The transformation of the desert after a rare winter rain has a different mood and tonal quality in comparison to the more frequently occurring summer rains that ride on the tail of the tropical monsoon from the north. The colours are vital, with misty dawns and delicate greens over frosted yellow grasses and wildflowers.

The movement of colour from the dry earth tones to lush green growth is slow, and an apprehensive mood is all-pervading as all life waits, hoping that an early glimpse of warmth will give the plants that final bit of zest to produce a desert in full-carpeted bloom. Once this happens, the bloom is brief and settles into an everlasting dry state. In Alhalkere Landscape, the growth of plant life is captured in aerial, with a hint of the peculiarly orange tone that desert soil can assume when recently flooded.

ANNABEL HOLT AND JANET HOLT