NATURAL HISTORY

These unique works of art give new life to reclaimed wood

- Craig Forget

Unique, reclaimed, local and timeless. These four words, I feel, define what I am trying to achieve with my artwork. I first became interested in reclaimed wood art in 2010 after an injury made it impossible to continue working in the custom trim industry. A friend of mine was working taking down 80-to-120-year-old barns at the time and asked if I was interested in purchasing some of the wood. Growing up in an agricultural area where most barns were originally built from trees in the surrounding area, I thought that this wood needed to be put to good use; I could not let this beautiful material go to a landfill or be burned.

What I love about reclaimed wood is that it comes in so many different shades of browns, greys, faded red paints and sometimes mossy green or lichen-encrusted pieces. This is what makes up 90 per cent of the colours you see in my artwork. I like using shades that Mother Nature created over time because it cannot be replicated with faux finishes; this is what makes my artwork unique compared to other works of art.