“Controlled Burn”

Growing up in a suburb of Philadelphia, the maple tree in our front yard offered me an ideal perch from which to view the changing seasons. Passersby did not see me, and it was as though I became invisible and merged with the tree. The central limbs were offset in a perfect configuration to safely support me. The color and texture of the tree’s bark under shifting light of the changing seasons is etched in my memory. In early spring, the delicate, new leaves unfolded, spread, and deepened in color. During fall as temperatures dropped, the leaves transitioned from green with yellow tipped leaves to translucent yellow. Autumn wind rustled the tree, the leaves shivered, released, and fluttered to the grass below creating new patterns. I loved that tree.

Precious time outside exploring nature’s rhythms and patterns nourished me in ways that nothing else could. With my neighbor’s dog, I explored small pockets of undeveloped land that included streams, fields and bluffs that later became auto dealer parking lots. We walked among the trees that lined the perimeter of my elementary school property that shared a high, sturdy fence with the neighboring property, an eerily quiet complex. More recently, I learned that cyclotron research was located there.

While admiring qualities of light and wondering at the majesty of nature, I remember the rhythmic, swooping sound of a helicopter as its tandem rotors sliced through the calm, suburban air. For years, the hulking, green Chinook helicopters approached, circled, and returned to the nearby Boeing Vertol manufacturing facility for continued testing. Teflon and nonstick pans were enthusiastically marketed for food preparation in the modern, yet isolated lab-like kitchens. Children gleefully, raced their bikes into the billowing fog clouds behind the DDT trucks intended to control mosquitos.

Since that time, a steady evolving tension and tipping of a fragile balance of nature has occurred. Human amplified climate change is contributing to record temperatures, an accelerating pattern of extreme weather patterns and devastating floods and wildfires. We are learning how to cope and develop resilience in the face of challenges posed by climate change and the global pandemic. I hope that our perspective matures to a point where we fully recognize the fragility of this blue planet and work to develop clarity, connect and make wise choices as we care for our environment.

The Pandemic offered me the opportunity to explore trails in Woodward Park, Yosemite National Park, Asilomar State Park and Edison Lake a few weeks before the Creek Fire began. This exploration enabled me to see the effects our choices make on our environment.  Photographs in the exhibit were made during 2020 and 2021.