Under the Gum Tree is a “literary micro-magazine” that is published both electronically and in hard copy. They specialize in creative nonfiction writing and also the visual arts. Recently they asked me if they could publish some of my work, in particular parts of my Lives Real and Imagined project.

When I got my hard copies of the magazine I was impressed with the quality of the presentation, both of my work and that of Gale Hart, the visual other artist in that issue. They may be a small outfit but they do an impressive job. My work presents as well there as it did when it was published in Lenswork magazine in 2013. (Technically the printed images in Lenswork are of better quality, that is just one aspect of how work comes across in a magazine.)

In conjunction with the publication, the magazine interviewed me via email. If you are so inclined, you can read the results on their blog here.

Breakfast at McDonald’s
Bozeman, Montana
2015

A raven checks out the offerings in the parking lot at McDonald’s. While there was a lot of trash to investigate, it was slim pickings as far as reward goes this time.

Pow Wow Players #4
Bozeman, Montana
2015

Pow Wow Players #3
Bozeman, Montana
2015

Pow Wow Players #2
Bozeman, Montana
2015

If I didn’t know that there was a balloon falling down out of the air, I’d wonder what kind of ritual the two kids on the right were performing.

Pow Wow Players #1
Bozeman, Montana
2015

Watching pow wow competitions all day for several day can get to be too much of a good thing, especially if you have a short attention span (think kids, and most social media addicts). I wasn’t bored with the dancing when I came across these kids on the edge of the arena, but watching them fill balloons with air and then letting them go shooting up into the air provided another kind of entertainment. They were obviously having great fun.

In this shot, while the three kids in the foreground were just getting ready to release a balloon, their friend in the background is waiting for his to come falling down after expelling all its air some ten or twelve feet above him.

Pow Wow #12
Bozeman, Montana
2015

I think the sunglasses really made this cool dancer’s look. Seeing him reminded me of a story I once heard about a prank the Indian extras played during the filming of the movie Little Big Man. I have no idea if the story is true but supposedly it happened when a scene was being filmed that called for a line of warriors in warpaint to ride up and pause threateningly all along a ridge overlooking the settlers or wagon train or whatever below. They rode up as planned but when the cameras zoomed in they found they were all wearing mirrored aviator sunglasses. I hope the director got a good laugh before asking them to shoot it again, sans sunglasses.

Pow Wow #11
Bozeman, Montana
2015

If she’s not a major matriarch, she sure ought to be. I’d listen to her I believe.

Pow Wow #10
Bozeman, Montana
2015

Pow Wow #9
Bozeman, Montana
2015

More nice headdresses. The guy in the middle and the young woman barely visible next to him were something similar to the king and queen of the pow wow (although I’m sure that’s not what they’re really referred to as). The lead the Grand Entry procession and after a turn around the arena were being presented to the officials in this shot.