The
snow numbed my face as I skied into the wind. The cold
penetrated and I felt the pain deep. I stopped to gasp
for breath. This predicament was as perilous as some
that the historically famous Dyer had experienced over
one hundred years earlier. Momentarily John Dyer's words
reminded me of the dangers of being out alone in the
snow, "The snow and wind were blowing so hard that
a man could hardly stand...No pen nor tongue can
describe its awful appearance." His fate nearly
ended several times in blinding snow on Mosquito Pass.
Father Dyer (as the miners affectionately referred to
him) skied throughout the Rocky Mountain gold camps
carrying the mail for his livelihood.
Unexpectedly
the sun beamed through the clouds even as the snow fell.
Again Dyer's thoughts came, "The sun penetrated the
storm so that the wonders could be clearly seen."
My hands had no feeling. I fumbled getting my gloves
off, and unzipped my jacket. Out came my camera and I
held it steady even though my body shook from
hypothermia. The storm dangerously drained me. Time had
run out, and I fought a survival instinct to abandon my
goal. And then, I got the photograph! I shook
convulsively and struggled with putting my camera away.
I had to leave.
As
I started down, my thoughts drifted off to Dyer's
earlier journeys in Summit County, Colorado. My
photographic efforts along these same trails have been
enriched with awareness of the history in this region.
Dyer's words record his colorful life, while I express
my feelings visually. The combination of our separate
experiences resulted in TRACKING THE SNOWSHOE ITINERANT. President Ford recognized my book with a letter of congratulations and further supported my efforts to document the Rocky Mountain region with an interview in his Beaver Creek home. Twelve images from this book comprise Portfolio
One which was sold in Denver's finest photographic galleries, David Hills Gallery, Ginny Williams Gallery and Camera Obscura, in the 1980's.
Though Kent
Gunnufson worked in the construction trades
most of his life, he also had a passion for photography at the same
time, and began SnowStorm Publications in 1981. Kent was acknowledged in
California Art Review, reviewed in The
Denver Post, included in Denver, Confluence of
the Arts and featured in
Popular
Photography, and the
Los
Angeles Times. Not only has Kent has extensive mountain
construction experience, a BS Business Degree from
CU-Boulder, and did graduate work in the School of
Environmental Design at CU-Denver. Kent's
Mountain Real Estate Buyer's Guide is the
premiere reference for buying property in the Rocky
Mountains.
In 1993 Kent produced and hosted Photo-Talk,
and later became an
independent producer for (CBS affiliate KCNC-4) for four years. His segments were part of KCNC's Mosaic's
national award in 1998 for the top 26 national markets from the
National Broadcast Association for Community Affairs and judged by the
University of Missouri School of Jounalism. Last year Kent won best Colorado film at the Colorado Independance Film Festival and a Remi Special Juror's Award at Worldfest-Houston. He was also awarded first place in photography at the Banff Cultural Center and his work is being exhibited in hundreds of communites around the world through Banff's 2010 Mountain Film World Tour.
Kent has given back to film and TV industry through volunteering his time with several film festivals, and in the early 2000's was a member of the National Television Academy, Heartland Chapter and helped evaluate Emmy nominees. Currently Kent is on the planning committee for the Colorado Environmental Film Festival and in 2009 has successfully established the Environmental Photography Exhibition as a fundraiser for the festival.
A trailor of one of Kent's films can be found here and a 1 minute motion slideshow of his still photography is here.
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