The Balliang Tree series began in August 2016 as heavy clouds were breaking overhead and I couldn’t help feeling we were both having the same kind of day. I began to wonder if we had both had the same kind of year, so I continued to photograph the tree over the next twelve months to see where it would lead.

I was taken though a dry summer with overbearing heat, a lush and productive spring, fires in April and all manner of cloud formations morphing together as time slowed down around me. All the while, the journey was also within.

I came to reflect on the idea that some things in life will change while others remain the same, and I pondered the question….‘Where am I headed?’. Would I carry on for years as the same old me, or was it time to find a different paddock and make some changes in my life?

Some of those questions have now been answered and in part I have the tree to thank. So thank you Balliang tree, I will continue to visit when I can and watch the world go by.

John Hardiman
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