Black-and-white photograph of a bare, twisted tree on a rocky shoreline, with shallow pools and a long truss bridge extending across the water from the left.

The Shape of Remaining

MG-0191

2020-07-20

About this piece

A solitary bare tree rises from the textured shore, its irregular branches set against an expansive sky. In Mike Gedj’s black-and-white composition, the bridge’s repeating supports provide a measured counterpoint to the twisting trunk, while shallow pools interrupt the dark foreground.

The story

I framed the tree to one side, leaving room for the bridge to stretch toward the horizon. Its repeating supports drew my eye across the water, but the crooked branches kept bringing me back to the shore. Between them lay a small pool, holding a quieter version of the sky. I wanted the photograph to preserve that balance: the long reach of something built, and the singular shape of something rooted.

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