Culturally Modified examines our evolving relationship with materials drawn from the living world. Rooted in the teachings of U’metl the Raven — a guide of enlightenment, transformation, and knowledge — the work reflects on the responsibility to care for all living things. Within Kwakwaka’wakw philosophy, every element of the natural world carries spirit, purpose, and connection.

Through this body of work, Rande Cook asks where humanity is heading as society becomes increasingly dependent on synthetic materials and manufactured culture. As old growth forests disappear and our connection to land weakens, the work questions what is lost when we move further away from the living systems that once sustained us physically, spiritually, and culturally. Culturally Modified becomes both a reflection and a warning — a call to reconsider how we coexist with the natural world and whether innovation can still evolve alongside respect, stewardship, and reciprocity.