Pine Tree Ballads by Paul Thulin

Issue 53

A small farmhouse surrounded by a dark forest of ancient pines struggles against the incessant nor'easter gusts of the Atlantic ocean. History creaks in the swaying limbs of this land where generations have discovered moments of wisdom, adventure, fear, and the miraculous.

Pine Tree Ballads is a poetic vision of land, family, and time. In the early 1900s, my great-grandfather settled on the coast of Maine because it resembled his homeland of Sweden and my family has returned to Gray's Point each summer for over a century. This photographic sequence resonates with a subtext of struggle and hope that mirrors my narrative sense of self. In this place, stories have arisen from the mouths of both the young and old that over time have become the essence of my family's identity. These images construct a unique memoir weaving the magical aura of an ancient, shared, historical record with the mysterious dreams met on dark moonless nights when one does not know if their eyes are open or closed.

Paul Thulin lives and works in Richmond, VA.
To view more of Thulin's work, please visit his website.