Artist's Note
# Winter Forest
The winter forest appears to have lost everything, yet it holds within it the passage of countless seasons.
The trees, having shed their leaves, bear the marks of time upon their bodies. Cracked bark, twisted trunks, old wounds, and bent branches reveal the years they have endured. Even in the stillness, where life seems to have come to a halt, the forest remains alive.
As I walked through the winter forest, I began to notice the individual expressions of the trees. Some stood bearing their wounds, others leaned against one another, while still others stretched their branches toward the light. Their forms reminded me of the faces of people who had lived through many years.
In the forest, beauty does not belong only to trees that grow straight and tall. Those that are broken or bent remain rooted in their places. Light and darkness, growth and decay, do not oppose one another but coexist within the same landscape.
Through black-and-white film, I recorded the winter forest, allowing color to fall away and leaving only light, shadow, the textures of trees, and traces of time. Through these traces, I sought to look beyond the visible landscape and contemplate the invisible years accumulated within it.
Winter Forest is a record of a season, but also a reflection on beings that continue to live through the passage of time.
Standing before trees that seem to have let go of everything, I find myself sensing the depth of life more profoundly.
The winter forest is not empty.
It is simply holding, in silence, the time yet to come.