Special article by Sheree Lincoln
You may know Stephen Redman, of Shadowland Photography, as a gifted photographer and writer whose work is offered for sale at the Artsplace in Fremont. He has an artistic eye for capturing images from nature, animals and people; often using double exposures to create something unique and filled with wonder. His main business is as a forester, planting trees, gathering seed and managing forests through his company Timber Resources.
Creativity comes naturally for some, it is cultivated in others and for many, Like Stephen Redman it is enhanced by tragedy. Out of his tragedy he has not only renewed his creative strength, he has started a legacy for his children with his tree planting for them and with his latest project A Living Remembrance TM Tree Seed kits, which combine his seed business and his art, he hopes to open an art school and gallery in White Cloud.
In March of 2005 the NCCCA Statewide photography competition going on at the Artsplace, much like the one that is the current show at the Artsplace except that year the NCCA had teamed up with Hospice and the theme of the show was based around grief, serenity, peace and caring. The Morning after he dropped his entries off Stephen received a phone call that would change his life forever or in his own words, “in all conceivable terms, devastated” his life. His family’s house, the same one he had grown up in, and currently lived in, had burned to the ground.
He captured the process of discovering what was lost and what was gained out of that tragedy in his journal. I share part of it with you here, Stephen writes, “ When we drove up, the fire was out, and all that remained was a few spots of smoke and flashes of all those memories…. Memories of things I had long forgot, lifted out of the smoke and all those ashes…I felt everything I knew was gone. The little things I thought were mine, were not. All the collections: the coins, stamps, arrowheads, glass, pottery, cameras and equipment, little things of every size and shape. Things of wonder, that were now nothing more than the past.”
“I’m not sure how I survived the ten days that followed. Every time I closed my eyes, I traveled through every room. Every little shelf or corner had something special that would be saved for my children and theirs. All my journals were nothing more than ashes in a filing cabinet. all that I was; the things that were a part of me: the best that I could ever be. “
I followed Stephen’s story and the mourning words of his journal. It seemed to him that he had lost his very self. On the 10th day after the fire he returned to the Artsplace to view all of the photographs on display in the NCCA competition and in Hospice Big Picture Project Show, including two of his, “…living water’ and “Thou Art With Me”. Many of the photos in that show were portraits of families in Hospice taken by the photographer as a gift to those families because their children were ill. There were faces of children everywhere and they spoke to him as he writes, “I don’t remember which I saw first: the happiness from the child’s eyes or the pain hidden beyond the smile of a Mother or a Father who knew they would soon lose their child to cancer. I’m not sure what happened to me that afternoon; but all at once, I was given the chance to remember. When I left I realized how lucky I truly was. For my children were alive and well; my family was safe. Their little smiles, I could still see and touch. Kiss their faces; hear their little voices and laughter… One hug or smile will shelter me for years.”
Many of his journals had been filled with inspiration from his children (Sean, Erik, Sierra and Joel) and nature, and now tragedy reborn into thankfulness. He had spent many years writing while on his tree planting sojourns for the Forestry service and others. These trips led him to want to create a legacy for his children and to encourage people to plant trees as A Living Remembrance TM. He has created a Remembrance Tree Seed Kit and a Forest in a Box Seed Kit so you can plant your own seeds. The seed kits come in an attractive box made from recycled materials.
The cover art work was created by Artist and now retired, White Cloud Art Teacher, David Gacchina, adapted by BrassWind Designs and includes some of Stephen Redman’s writing on the well appointed box.
He writes “Trees are an integral part of everyone’s lives from the air we breathe to the paper and wood in our homes. There is aesthetic value to lying quietly in the coolness of the shade from your favorite tree while watching clouds drift slowly by. Some of my best writings and photography have been inspired in nature. There is great joy in watching the sun set over a newly planted field of half a million trees or standing underneath huge pines and seeing, and feeling, the power of the lightening as it crashes to the earth. I have been planting trees for land owners for nearly 30 years with over 32 million trees planted on over 32,000 acres across Michigan. As I watch my children grow, along with over 1,200 acres of pines, tamaracks, and oaks I have planted for them; I feel the contentment of a legacy left. By purchasing Shadowland Seeds you can create a living remembrance with your family nurturing your seeds and then planting your own trees. The distribution and plantings of our seeds along with the harvesting of its timber will help support my vision to build an art school and gallery. I am content knowing I am helping you plant your legacy as I continue to grow mine.”
Each seed kit contains 15 or 20 seeds in an origami folded seed packet, peat pots and instructions for planting your seeds, a Remembrance card where you can note where your tree was planted and by whom; there is even a place for the GPS location. The card also talks about the nine different species of trees available.
NewPage publishing is sponsoring a coloring contest in this issue to accompany this article. The winners will each receive one of the Remembrance Tree Seed Kits.
Visit Stephen Redmen's Shadowland website at www.shadowlandseed.com
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