Cascade, Redfish Lake, Sawtooth Wilderness, Idaho,

2004

<p> McPhee created this photograph as part of the <em>River of No Return</em> series, which focuses on landscapes and people living and working in Sawtooth Valley, Idaho. A gushing river flows directly downhill toward the viewer, while a figure at top right emerges from the trees and looks across the water. The scene inspires awe of nature but also evokes potentially unsettling feelings due to the uncontrolled force of the water and the figure’s mysterious presence. Describing the series, McPhee has noted, “I hope that viewers will understand the pictures as a way of talking about the veils and layers there are in life itself. Our decisions about each other, the land, animals . . . I seek to portray the profound beauty of life and at the same time the deep darkness that can accompany that.” </p>