Melted

Fascinating exhibit up at Spalding House Museum called "Inquiring Finds" the science behind the art. Small concise exhibits on chemistry of ceramic glazes; camera obscura; colour, light and perception; kinetics and Rube Goldberg machines; and art of entrophy and decay.
This tickled my fancy the most: Entitled "May the Heart of the Tin Woodsman Be with You", it was originally a framed and matted collage of wood engravings. The piece was scorched in a house fire. Amazingly the artwork itself and surrounding mat board remained relatively untouched. The effects of the blaze are seen in the melted and crystalized acrylic sheet sagging in the central image area.
The art collector took the piece back to the artist. "Recognizing an evocative specialness now inherent in the burnt artwork", the artist took the piece back, traded the collector another collage, reframed the damaged piece in another acrylic box frame and - lo, an even more special work of art."

This exhibit definitely needs further exploration!