People Of The West

Through my wanderings I've had the good fortune to meet many memorable people.  People, whom for me, define the land on which they live as much as it defines them.  Most of these people tend to be just good plain folk who take pride in their work, their way of life, and who honor family, friendship and the land.  They all have an interesting story to tell.  While many of these photographs were made while performing an assignment or personal projects, many of the people in them remain friends.

If you ask any American Indian person to translate their native name for their tribe into English you will often get "the People" as your answer.  The People of today, whether Hopi, Navajo, Pueblo, Tohono O'odham or any one of the 58 tribes indigenous to the Southwest, represent cultures that date back thousands of years.  In the case of the O'odham, they've matured right along with their home environment - both are about 12,000 years old.  We have much to learn from our indigenous neighbors.  It begins with recognizing that we are all more alike than different. If we learn to appreciate our common bonds then we can learn to respect our differences.  It has been a privilege to work with and among the indigenous people of the southwest for many years.