Salted apples and love…

When I was a little girl I would take regular walks in the woods with my grandfather. My grandmother would pack a snack for us – always apples, that Grampy would later sprinkle with salt- and, occasionally, what my grandmother called tea cakes- oddly the only cookie that she, creative woman that she was, could make.

Grampy and I would start out on our walk right from the house and onto a trail that led through a dense growth of trees then upward to a rocky overlook from which we could see the valley below and the hills beyond. We would find a spot to have our snack and then just look about at the beauty before us. I imagine we would chat for a while- he was a great storyteller – but what I remember best is a sense of awe at the beauty of the place and a feeling of belonging.

I have no doubt that my appreciation for the natural world comes directly from those times with my grandfather. They were easy times together that instilled in me a love for hiking in the forest and for the beauty and wildness that is contained there.

I now am well older than my grandfather was when we walked together in the woods. I have traveled extensively and lived in a lot of different places. At times, I feel as if I have also lived several different lives. Now, blessedly, I have settled in Jackson Hole, Wyoming where, as I did with my grandfather so long ago, I can step right out of my back door and thrive in vast, natural beauty.

When I am out walking- always with a camera – often something I see will say to me Stop. Look. This. Now. Don’t miss this. Take this picture! Take another! The images, that I obediently and excitedly take, seal in the camera moments of light and shadow as they fall across trees, trails, rocks and water and even tiny mountain wildflowers. And, although, these moments are often brief, they are vivid moments of connection. Yes, yes. I see you, Thank you.

My grandfather gave me walks and the woods and with that came a significant sense of ease in the natural world that has never left me. My art, using the photographs taken on these walks, combined with gold or copper leaf, foil or paint, depicts these vibrant moments. It is an invitation to connect to the places I love.