in ancient norse society, a völva was a woman past her childbearing years who practiced seið witchcraft, and was highly regarded for foretelling the future, harvest and weather. the völva was independent and respected in norse society, and would carry their seið staff with them to practice rituals to bless the land with good fortune – its spiritual connection to yggdrassil believed to aid them in the travel into the realms of the spirits and back to this world.

since i was a kid, i’ve spent every summer in a remote municipality above the arctic circle in northern Norway with my family. dissected by fjords and mountains, it is unknown to most outsiders – but it is self-reliant and community forward, as most of the Norwegian countryside has taught itself to be. the midnight sun in the summer bring local festivities, seasonal visitors and joyful mania, the polar nights in the winter redefine loneliness. i’ve experienced what i now know to call climate grief since I was 11, understanding that the diverse and beautiful ecosystem i was finally beginning to understand was temporary. but when i’m in northern norway, the sun never fully sets, and it almost feels like we exist in an alternate reality where nature itself is sentient, like the great tree of yggdrassil; and in my illusion, seið magic feels possible. 

“sunwalker” is a personal meditation on climate grief, and how norwegian mythicism and folklore inspire a community’s relationship with the nature around them. everything is shot around my parents’ house or within walking distance, featuring locals, family, and family friends. i am hoping to spend the summer wrapping up the project, and want to photograph more local kids and teens diving for sea urchin and mussels or playing at the beach, older folks of Sámi descent, the morning fog that hovers over the wheat fields at sunrise, the local neurodivergent witch Lillian and her seið staff, a trip out to sea with my cousin the commercial fisherman, bird watching with my dad, the mysterious, deep forest behind our house filled with porcini mushrooms, and hopefully the odd backyard still life or two.