In late 2015, I attended an art workshop hosted by Aboriginal Student Services at Brock University and tried wood burning. I instantly fell in love with the medium and caught on to it very quickly - I am proud to say I am self-taught! In the summer of 2016, I made the leap from a hobbyist to an amateur artist when I started creating one-of-a-kind pieces for sale and started taking part in art showcases and galleries in the Niagara region of Ontario. In 2019, I made the leap from an amateur to a semi-professional artist when I was commissioned by the City of Kingston to create the physical awards for the Mayor’s Arts Awards. Since then, I have completed the 2020 awards and I am currently working on completing the 2021 awards as well. The main theme of my art stems from my Indigenous culture, I tend to focus on the earth and everything that it encompasses. I have been very influenced by this in creating my art as I really want to portray the beauty of our environment and all the animals that we coincide with. Furthermore, a pillar of my culture is realizing what humans are on the planet for - and that is to be the caretakers of Mother Earth and all that live in it. We were put on this planet to help take care of it, not to destroy it. I share overarching theme through my work to better educate the mainstream Canadian & American culture, with the ultimate goal of stimulating the viewers own critical-thinking with respect to their current livelihood, our society, and humans' relationship with the planet. As my art is made from wood, I have made it a priority and focus to help give back to Mother Earth as it has provided me with the ability to make my art through the use of trees. I pay for the planting of 10 trees per piece of art purchased. Additionally, I have made an effort to acquire my wood from things such as unusable wooden furniture. If you would like to view more of my work go to www.chipmccrimmon.com and feel free to follow me @intricateburns