i made this image on one of my first explorations of an area of rocky mountain national park where the east troublesome fire had made an impact. it was an area i knew intimately - i’d photographed the aspen here on multiple occasions, and i was devastated to see those aspen no longer standing. i stood among the carnage for a while trying to process my emotions - so that i could then pour those emotions into any images i made.

many of these first images i made were sad images. i saw this charred tree from a distance. it appeared almost like a totem pole with multiple beings or elements stacked on top of one another. totem poles have different meanings, but can commemorate ancestors and significant historical happenings. the shapes reminded me of a face, weeping from the grief of what it is that’s being seen around it.