Fleming Zuhling | bowls and spoons

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Fleming Zuhling, “Field Stone Bowl (#25.2.2),” no date

found rock, 7 x 17 x 12.5 inches (courtesy of the Gallery)

During the last glaciation, much of present-day Canada—including southeastern Alberta—was buried beneath massive ice sheets. As glaciers advanced and retreated, they transported and deposited a wide range of sediments. One of the most prominent deposits is till—a poorly sorted mixture of clay, silt, sand, pebbles, cobbles, and boulders left behind as the ice melted. While till is typically angular and unstratified, meltwater streams on and beneath the ice sheet reworked some of this material, rounding the clasts and sorting them into more organized deposits such as outwash plains and eskers. These glacial sediments, remnants of an ancient and powerful process, are now scattered across the Canadian landscape, with particularly well-preserved deposits in southeastern Alberta.

Fleming draws directly from this glacial legacy, transforming fieldstones—many of which were deposited by retreating glaciers—into sculptural works. By reworking these ancient materials, he echoes the natural processes of abrasion and reshaping, but through a human lens. His practice bridges geology and art, turning the silent residue of ice age forces into expressive, contemporary forms that reflect both deep time and the ongoing relationship between land and culture