China
The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in Northern China, built originally to protect the northern boarders of the Chinese Empire against intrusions by various nomadic groups. This Wall was built in the 5th century BC. This portion of the wall is in Shanhaiguan. The wall expands 4,000 miles long. This is a small glimpse of the expanse of such a wonder of the world. The Great Wall series was taken in the winter during the bitter cold while I was on tour there with my husband and children. The effect was the look of brittle foliage against the wall making it seem more a drawing than a photograph. It always amazes me that what is in you minds eye comes out in the final image. I had been thinking while shooting that it would be amazing to draw the Wall in pencil, how intricate the bricks looked, how much time and effort this took human beings to make. It boggles the mind when you sit to think about this feat. I really wanted to do a different take on The Great Wall image and show the intricacy of the work that was put in to making it. I wanted to show the great scale, the steepness and turns in the wall that make it such an extraordinary journey. The effect came out just as I intended and the series is often mistaken for pencil drawings.