Spilyay Tymoo, Warm Springs, Oregon
October 31, 2002
An example of a pictograph located in the John Day Basin. Henderson, who renovates pictographs, with a polarizing light and digital enhancement, says there's
years of work left, in order to document all the remaining pictographs in the Columbia River Plateau.
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One of 125 in his profession in the U.S., a simple twist of fate gives Jim Henderson a new
direction. The results land at the Museum of Warm Springs.
Story by Shannon Keaveny
im Henderson, a medical photographer by trade,
claims he ended up where he is by a dare and a
prayer.
Henderson's father-in-law first told him of the
pictographs at Horse Thief State Park and sue-
J gested he take a photo,
t t j; 1
1 JC U1U.
The photo was of the famous pictograph, She Who
Watches, and was shot with an infrared light. The image
stood out just beautifully, said Henderson.
The photo was given to a friend, who hung it in his of
fice. Years later an archaeologist in Hell's Canyon saw that
photo and exclaimed, "Damn that's the best picture of She
Who Watches I've seen."
By 1988 Henderson was in Hell's Canyon trying out his
luck with another photo shoot.
"I failed miserably," said Henderson of his first picto
graph shoot. "My photos captured the images no more than
other people's photos."
But, it sparked his interest, and after much trial and er
ror, and $7,000 of his own money, in 1992, he came to a
basic understanding.
"I came to understand it's not the photo but the interac
tion of light with the surface. It's like understanding that
you can't boat upstream with a sail."
Henderson compares a pictograph to an amber stone
with an encased and preserved bug. Silica, he says, runs
over the pictograph and preserves it. It's basically like a
sheet of glass.
There are two reasons, according to Henderson, the rock
images often can't be seen with the naked eye and don't
photograph well with conventional methods. First, weath
ered rock scatters light.
"It's like looking at a piece of sandpaper." he explains.
The other reason is the silica deposit. Like the surface
glare of a river, to see through the silica encasing, a polar
ized light or lens is used to remove surface reflections.
I Icnderson's method utilizes his understanding by using
a polarizing light. I le also uses digital imaging that increases
the color saturation to createbrightcr and more contrasting
images. I le shoots in the dark of night.
"You can't polarize the sun." he muses.
Henderson's results arc works of art. Bright hues of
reds, oranges and yellows exude from the rock walls clarify
ing images unable to be seen otherwise.
"I do not add color, I take away the scattered reflection
and concentrate on the 10 percent of color that is absorbed
into the surface and then bounces off."
I lenderson "s first official pictograph shoot was funded
by grants for approximately $3,500 plus film from Kodak.
Unable to get adequate time off, he quit his job as a medical
photographer. I le embarked on his first photo shoot using
this method and set up camp at Horse Thief State Park.
Photographing all trie pictographs took a month.
"It's the largest congregation of pictographs that remain,"
"My kick is making the
images available to the
tribes. As far as I'm con
cerned they should stay with
the people who made
them."
Jim Henderson
Pictograph photographer
says Henderson about his choice to photograph Horse
Thief State Park. "Consequently, they have endured a lot
of vandalism."
The photo images can be used for research, evidence
(in case of vandalism), and as a non-damaging form of
recording a dwindling history as nature runs its natural
course.
Henderson's main objective is the preservation of the
cultural heritage for river tribes especially in lands they
don't control.
"My kick is making the images available to the tribes.
As far as I'm concerned they should stay with the people
who made them."
Henderson hopes to document all the pictographs in
the ceded lands for the Columbia River tribes in the next
7 to 8 years. He estimates there are an additional 40 per
cent to record in the ceded lands but, that, more picto
graphs are constantly being discovered.
"This area was crawling with people. In every river
drainage, I find pictographs."
Henderson has ventured with his photograph technique
to other domains. To date, he has photographed ancient
writings from Israel and immigrant names sketched into
rocks on the Oregon Trail.
This method, he says, unlike others, has no destruc
tive effect.
Imagei find a home
Recently, 1 Icnderson's photographic depictions of pic
tographs in ceded lands were handed over to The Mu
seum at Warm Springs.
A comprehensive database containing Henderson's
work is one of the final objectives of the project he's
been contracted out to do since 1996.
In 1996, the National Park Service awarded The Mu
seum at Warm Springs a $50,000 grant. In 1998, the
Meyer Memorial Trust awarded the museum an addi
tional $52,000.
As a private contractor, Henderson is obligated to
return the photos to the museum.
Henderson, who wrote the grant, is happy to turn his
work over to the tribes.
"I'd like to finish this work in the ceded lands and
what should be done with my work is up to the tribes,
whether that's to bury it, make t-shirts, or use it as an
education tool. I hope a respectful awareness of what
this is comes out of this."
Henderson's grant also included an internship pro
gram that supported the idea that some day tribes would
document their own pictographs. Three tribal members
have introductory training at this procedure.These ef
forts are often blocked by a lack of time.
"A young person typically needs a full-time job and
this isn't that. I think a retired person who wants to pre
. serve this part of the tribes' heritage would be perfect."
Henderson says once you get the hang of it, a person
will get good quick.
"But this technique isn't light. It's a complicated pro
cedure where experience is involved." he explains.
Henderson hopes that this procedure will eventually
provide money for the tribe and an inside job.
Currendy, The Museum at Warm Springs Archivist
Alberta Comedown-Libby houses the images at their li
brary. In the future they will be available to view by the
public.
The database contains the images and the approxi
mate location. A viewer can flip through them and en
large images for a closer view. Exact locations will not be
given to the general public to protect them from dam
age ' "
"I think that archaeologists and anthropologists will
be interested in using these images for research." said
Eveline Part. At this time, the images are not available
for research use.
Comedown-Libby envisions them being used for edu
cational purposes.
"I would like to see education that a simple rubbing
can cause harm. For instance with chalk markings, the
oil sucks and causes damage to the pictographs." she
said.
Henderson thinks younger generations could be edu
cated about the value of the pictographs through dance
or storytelling. ,
Another idea mulling around is a traveling slideshow..
Ideas are contigent upon the museum's board of direc
tors and the tribal council's approval and subsequent
funding.
Meanwhile, before the rocks crumble and crack and
return to the earth, the images remain protected at The
Museum at Warm Springs for the tribes to decide their
fate.