"People mistake the things for the gift. They are not. The gift was getting to enjoy them—the memories they created."
THE STORY
In January 2025, the Eaton Fire destroyed the home of a professional balloon artist in Altadena, California. After returning to the ruins, he placed a series of balloon flowers throughout the ash—small gestures of color in a landscape erased by fire.
When asked how he could remain so calm after losing everything, he said:
“People make the mistake of thinking the things are the gift. They’re not. The gift was getting to enjoy them—the memories they created.”
These photographs were taken moments after the flowers were placed. They document an act of resilience and a reflection on impermanence—how quickly physical objects vanish, and how experience endures.
Each framed print in The Gift is a true one-of-one, with unique elements applied to both the frame and the print itself, reinforcing the work’s central theme: that permanence is an illusion, and meaning lives in connection and memory.
THE PROMISE
One hundred percent of proceeds from this series supports charities providing musical instruments and art supplies to those who lost them in the fires.