Photo Essay
by Anatoly Tokar
Ernst Tinaja
I
discovered Big Bend for myself
fairly recently, but I haven’t missed
a visit there in a single year since
then. Wonder why? I am not sure yet,
but every time spring draws near, I feel
something akin to what migratory
birds must feel – the need to travel to
that special place. I do not question it;
I just grab my 40-pound photo-back-
pack, tent and other equipment and
take off Down South.
When invited to write this article, I
16
was glad to have the opportunity to
reflect on my experiences in Big Bend
and to search for the reasons that draw
me there time and time again. My first
step was to select my favorite black-and-
white photos. This wasn’t hard, and I
found them almost instantly. After star-
ing at them for a good half of an hour
a word emerged – graphics!
Graphics, as an attribute of the
landscape, could be found in almost any
of the photos. It could be lines or shad-
Cenizo
Third Quarter 2012
ows, sand dunes shaped by the winds or
the contours of a city or mountains. I
know that the Big Bend graphics have
something special, even magical, if you
wish.
Have a look at Ernst Tinaja. Is it just
me, or do you also feel drawn into it by
its lines? I tried to explain this attribute
through the canyon geometry and the
effect of the wide-angle lens. But then I
looked at the other images, and I felt the
same feeling! But neither the clouds nor
the agave leafs, and certainly not the
round balancing boulder, possessed a
straight graphic linear pattern. However,
they still somehow accomplish this
magic alignment of shapes which
engraves into your mind like water does
into sand.
Imprinted by those graphics, I
become restless until I find myself back
again, eager to feel those graphics inside
of me and to reach peace of mind! Until
next April…