Rooted Among Sentinels

About this piece

A spreading, gnarled tree anchors the right foreground of this black-and-white desert landscape, counterbalancing the massive rock face at left. Two upright rock formations draw the eye into the middle distance beneath an expansive sky. Strong sunlight articulates stone, bark, and scrub in a composition of rugged textures and quiet endurance.

The story

September light falls across the exposed rock, tracing its seams and shallow hollows. Beneath the tree, branching shadows gather on the pale ground beside a twist of fallen wood. Beyond the low shrubs, two stone towers stand apart against thin cloud. The eye moves from the intricate grain of the trunk to those distant, spare forms, finding stillness in the space between.