Construction with a sense of origin.
Provenance begins with a simple idea: understand where a project comes from, then make every construction decision answer to it.
The origin, history, and chain of decisions that give something its meaning.
For us, that means understanding the land, the architectural intention, the client’s priorities, and the field decisions behind the finished place. A project should not only look resolved. It should have a clear reason for becoming what it is.
Where vision becomes enduring form.
Vision is the beginning: the client’s priorities, the architect’s intent, and the possibilities held by the land. Enduring form is the result of carrying that vision through budgets, details, sequencing, and field decisions without allowing the original idea to disappear.
That is the work behind the finished place—translating what matters into something buildable, resolved, and capable of belonging to its setting for years to come.
Composed. Exacting. Grounded.
Composed
Clear information, deliberate pacing, and calm leadership through complex decisions.
Exacting
Attention to alignment, sequence, protection, documentation, and the invisible work behind the finish.
Grounded
Practical field knowledge, respect for the site, and direct communication without performance.
Leadership
Provenance is led by two operating partners whose combined backgrounds span nearly five decades of hands-on construction, real estate, and business — the same field-earned standards the company is built on.
James Stirling
CEOJames Stirling has spent 32 years in construction, starting in New York City and Long Island, where he got his start framing residential luxury homes ranging from 15,000 to 50,000 square feet. That early foundation in large-scale, precision framing set the exacting standard he has carried through every project since.
His career expanded into commercial construction, where he built a deep background in helical piles, deep foundation systems, bang piles, and superstructure high-rise construction. From there, he moved into high-rise window installation on the World Trade Center, and all framing and finish work on the Aqueduct Casino. He also did full-scope work on the Converse flagship store in Manhattan and the Gotham Center — framing, sheetrock, and finish carpentry, from structure to final detail. Along the way, he led the structural and concrete work on the dormitories at Stony Brook College, and handled all framing and interior finish work for New York University.
James spent years doing major framing and trim work for Ben Krupinski Builder, constructing ultra-luxury homes throughout the Hamptons and beyond — work held to the same uncompromising standard that now defines Provenance.
For the past six years, James has brought that same depth of experience to Montana, building custom luxury homes throughout the Flathead Valley, including Bigfork and Whitefish.
Ben Krupinski Builder
Lane A. Houk
President & COOLane Houk's roots in building and real estate go back to the 1980s and '90s, working alongside his father at Lee Houk Homes, a custom home builder in Wisconsin. That early, hands-on exposure to the trade set the course for a career spent at the intersection of construction, real estate, and business.
From 2002 to 2009, Lane was a licensed real estate broker and mortgage broker, operating a full-service real estate, mortgage, and title company. The experience gave him a ground-level view of every stage of a real estate transaction, from financing through closing.
At the peak of that period, Lane's branch closed more than $30 million a year in mortgage and real estate transactions. Running an operation at that volume meant owning the business end to end — loan origination and underwriting coordination, licensing and regulatory compliance, staff supervision, and the title and escrow operations required to close every transaction cleanly and on schedule.
A serial entrepreneur, Lane most recently founded and sold a software company in 2024. He brings that same operational discipline to Provenance, overseeing the systems and execution behind every project.
A builder should strengthen the idea, not compete with it.
Provenance is positioned to collaborate with homeowners, business owners, architects, interior designers, landscape teams, engineers, and specialty consultants. The goal is a field process that makes each discipline more effective and keeps the project moving from shared information.
Begin a conversationA lasting project begins with a clear reason for building it.
Tell us where the project stands, what the site is asking of it, and what you want the building experience to protect.
Start a project