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Cribbing 2015 - 2019
Watercolour on paper
In Newfoundland, cribbing is a frame or crib of logs, secured under water to form a support for a fish stage or store. The construction of cribbing involves practical knowledge about the natural elements. From the harvest of selected lumber to the installation of the “pile junks”, it is a lengthy and methodic process that can provide insight on how to work with the forces of the tides, winds, waves and ice.
Newfoundland fishery terms:
Ballast bed: a framework of heavy logs or beams, filled with rocks, forming the crib of a wharf
Ballast: rocks that hold the crib in place
Pile junks: siding to protect the crib from sea ice intrusion that might break apart the framework
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