PO Box 703, Black Diamond,
Alberta, Canada, T0L 0H0
Fracture-Scaping begins with naturally found wood fractures. I read their ridges, recesses, and planes as fields of landscape possibility, using chromatic interpretation to reveal a composition guided by the fracture. The fracture remains the governing form and a participant in authorship.
PRESERVED FORM, PAINTED INTERPRETATION
Interpretation remains confined to naturally fractured surfaces. Unfractured exterior wood and bark are preserved, and expressive fracture geometry is not mechanically reshaped. Minimal preparation is permitted only on the horizontal base plane when required for stable presentation.
PROVENANCE AND STEWARDSHIP
The practice preserves each work’s available connection to its source, while By Nature works require documented geographic provenance and chain of custody.
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A Nine-Step Practice of Material Restraint
Fracture-Scaping follows a limited-intervention process that preserves the geometry of a naturally found wood fracture while documenting its available source history, stabilization, interpretation, and completed identity.
THE FOUND FRACTURE
The practice begins with a naturally found fracture whose original cause need not be known. Its expressive geometry is discovered and interpreted—not manufactured by the artist.
FIELD IDENTITY AND AUTHORITY
For By Nature qualification, each recovered specimen is documented in situ and connected to its source landscape, recovery date, location, field photography, and applicable recovery authorization. Species and any possible cause of fracture are recorded as qualified observations where reasonably supportable.
Material entering Genesis is documented according to its actual acquisition history and available evidence. Missing field documentation is identified transparently rather than retrospectively implied.
MINIMAL MECHANICAL INTERVENTION
Mechanical preparation is permitted only on the horizontal base plane where cutting, levelling, or light sanding is required for stable presentation.
Expressive fracture geometry, unaffected exterior wood, and bark are not mechanically reshaped. Material already loose or structurally insecure may be removed by hand, following its existing separation without carving or leverage.
CONTROLLED DRYING
Specimens are stabilized gradually according to their size, condition, and initial moisture. Readiness for interpretation is determined by sufficient drying time, a post-stabilization moisture reading below 12 percent, and visual and physical assessment.
BORATE PROTECTION
Borate treatment forms part of the studio’s current pest-management protocol. Treatment reduces biological risk but cannot prevent all future movement or guarantee structural permanence.
EXTERIOR STABILIZATION
Vulnerable natural surfaces may be consolidated with matte medium and protected with matte varnish. Treatment supports the artifact without mechanically changing its geometry or concealing its biological character.
CHROMATIC INTERPRETATION
Selected fractured surfaces may receive gesso, heavy-body acrylic, matte protective coating, and selective gloss. Unaffected exterior wood and bark remain unpainted.
No bulk epoxy resin or synthetic filler is used to fill, reconstruct, or cosmetically normalize the fracture.
AUTHENTICATION AND COA
The exposed base and identifying anatomical features are photographed for visual comparison with the physical object. These images support identity and authenticity; they do not determine age or reconstruct previous environmental conditions.
A fitted leather Certificate of Authenticity mat protects the base and carries the debossed collection identity, registry address, and maker’s mark.
CLASSIFICATION AND REGISTRY
A specimen documented through field recovery retains its field identity until interpretation and review are complete. A resolved work may then receive the applicable collection suffix—for example, 1.2a-FSN-2026 or 1.2a-FSG-2026. Material acquired outside the field system retains its actual acquisition history and receives an appropriate registry identity.
FSN identifies completed works satisfying the full By Nature requirements. FSG identifies completed Genesis works, including formative experiments and fully resolved works whose provenance falls outside those requirements. The designations distinguish provenance classifications, not tiers of artistic quality.
Historical Genesis works retain their existing identifiers and documented treatment histories. Unfinished or unresolved specimens retain working records without receiving a completed collection designation.