Looking at the trees that surround us, it seems there could be nothing in nature more solid and immutable. But in New Paltz-based photographer Nora Scarlett’s Trunks of the Gunks, first published in 2016 and revised for 2022, the forests of the Shawangunk Mountains are revealed as dynamic. We see a constantly changing landscape, one shaped by time and the environment where trees companionably intertwine limbs, twist and turn as they reject the darkness and thrive in the most improbable of locations.
The new edition of the book includes 49 additional photographs along with the original content, including a rather startling sequence of images from 2010 to 2021 showing a dramatic change in the relationship between one particular Castle Point maple tree and a trail marker. A prelude written by Peter Del Tredici of the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard has been added to the 2022 revision, accompanying the original foreword by Mohonk Preserve’s Paul Huth and an introduction by Scarlett.
The photographs are presented thematically, with each section focusing on a different idea. Many have a humorous aspect. In “Move” trees appear as if in motion, hastily scrambling up a rock wall or slithering across a mossy boulder, and in “Dine” trees appear caught in the act of digesting something. The “Smile” section features tree formations that resemble faces and creatures that Scarlett notes were revealed “through a unique combination of light, shape, texture and even blemish. I do not like cutesy images, and these could easily have become that. But (the images) found me.”
The Trunks of the Gunks project began back in 2005, when the photographer was walking in the woods one day and noticed a tree that appeared to be “kissing” a boulder. Intrigued by the sight, Scarlett returned home for her camera, studio tripod and accessories. “With my interest piqued, I wondered what other amazing trees were hiding in plain sight, and so began my search.” Already an avid outdoors enthusiast, she now had a mission on her hikes, perched in precarious situations looking for the best angles and out in all types of weather.
The photographs document nature as she found it. The only manipulations made on site were minor things like removing a fallen branch from the scene or tweaking the placement of a leaf that got in the way of the tree roots she really wanted to photograph. Many times she went back to photograph the same scene to get the right lighting. Scarlett does spend a great of time with the images after shooting them, using computer software to subtly bring out the lights and darks and color contrasts, but only to bring out its best qualities.
Scarlett grew up in Palo Alto, California, discovering photography in high school. While attending UC Berkeley in the early ‘70s, she worked as a photojournalist for the campus press and became hooked. After moving to New York City in 1976, she learned her craft in the studios of several well respected photographers, including a stint as a print spotter for Irving Penn.Inspired by large format cameras and studio lighting, Scarlett developed her own workcreating still life photographs and maintained her own commercial studio for more than 20 years, with numerous clients that included Gap, American Express, Chanel and IBM. Certain qualities emerged that still define her work, she says: a bold use of color and light, elegant yet sometimes quirky compositions, a fascination with making ordinary objects beautiful and developing concepts that result in a series of images. Scarlett moved up to New Paltz in 1998 and spends part of each year in Utah.
Trunks of the Gunks images have been exhibited along the way and some are now featured hanging in the great room of the new Grove Lodge addition to Mohonk Mountain House. The new hardcover edition of the book is available in the gift shop and visitor center there as well as local retailers.
The 2022 edition of Trunks of the Gunks (Black Dome Press) has been expanded to 144 pages and features 135 full-color photographs in an approximately nine-inch square format. More information is available at norascarlett.com.
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