The Beauty of Bark

Hello and welcome to Tree Gazing. My name is Nina Killham and I like to take photos of tree bark--particularly the gums and paperbark in Melbourne and around Australia. I love the beauty of these native trees and their personalities.


My Forest Gallery


I first arrived on a visit to Australia about 20 years ago and immediately became fascinated with the beauty of gum trees. I loved how their twisting branches reached so elegantly towards the sky. Seven years ago I moved to Melbourne and began a love affair with these trees, enthralled with the sway of their trunks and the patterns on their bark.

A wander through the local park or forest is now a visit to an art gallery--a gallery that changes according to the time of day or year and the mood of the weather. Hues turn golden at dusk, bark cracks in the summer revealing new growth, and patterns emerge bold and bright in the rain.


Often I see faces. Some might call it pareidolia. I call it acknowledging the spirit and infinite worth of these beautiful beings.

My Tree Clan
Picture

I have lived many places in my life, both as a child and an adult, and consequently I often have trouble feeling as if I belong. As the perennial outsider I tend to feel separate from those around me. And yet when I wander the native forests in Australia I finally feel at home. I feel as if I've found my clan. 

Sadly, my clan is under threat. Worldwide deforestation has increased substantially and native trees are in danger. Native growth is disappearing at a far too rapid rate. Between 1990 and 2016, the world lost 502,000 square miles (1.3 million square kilometers) of forest.


Understandably, the trees are getting nervous.
In fact, I have taken photos of them to prove my point... 
Together, we must protect them.

Please visit the other pages of this website to learn more about these trees, how to help them and see more of my photos. I hope you enjoy.
I would like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation who are the traditional custodians of the land I live and wander on. I would also like to pay my respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to other indigenous people who live in Australia and throughout the world.

© All rights reserved. Nina Killham 2020