In "Arbitrary Relics," Eslao brings his practice closer to his community, where a fire broke out last year, leaving permanent physical and emotional damage to its residents. From the debris, Eslao salvaged found objects and produced related images that act as seemingly random undertakings to fill an inexplicable void and mediate in the process of continuing. 

Here, objects become more than mere detritus of an unexpected event. Instead, they become paths to navigating loss—a mechanism to fill an inexplicable void and a symbolic reference to the process of recovery and survival. Moreover, the repetitive approach of collecting and gathering is in itself an act of memorialisation. 

Eslao dissects remembering by highlighting imprints and marks from the community, presenting the then and the now. Understanding the significance of space, memory, and human connection, Arbitrary Relics weighs in on lives lived and histories formed. By assembling together material and intangible remnants, we recognise what is important despite what appears to be random acts collecting. As we confront our memories, we realise that narratives continue to be uncovered, even in ruins, and history is honoured.