Description

Cosmos from Chaos
Southwestern Cosmos, South Fork, Little Colorado River, AZ
8-21-22 10 A.M.
22×28

$4400

In the summer of 2022 it rained, and it rained a lot. The hills near South Fork were verdant green and covered with flowers. Several fields near the river looked as if they had been planted, but they were wild. According to some sources, wild Cosmos in Arizona “is never observed in large numbers,” yet here I was, observing it.

This area of Arizona is dominated by the Springerville Volcanic Field, which consists of 405 discrete vents over 3000 square miles. It is the third largest such field in the United States, where rolling hills of grassland collide with pine-covered mountains. It is also where craggy cliffs lift above watersheds, creating inhospitable-looking formations. However, the Mogollon Culture creatively used these formations to their advantage, building villages and garden terraces; Casa Malpais being the largest example.

It is thought that Spanish priests named Cosmos flowers for the Greek meaning of the word because they thought the structure of the petals displayed the harmony of the universe. The ground erupts, and beauty follows, beauty from ashes.