Richard Sala: Vodnik

The Russian beast known as the Vodnik is reported in many forms: the appearance of a bearded old man, a water ghoul, or simply a floating log. Sala's vision brilliantly connects these experiences: A wayward traveler, were she among the lucky few to escape the Vodnik, may register being watched only to swing around and see water shimmering about this ominous log. Look beyond it and there your wrinkled ghoul lurks, retreating for the moment of a safer attack. The forest is haunted by the Vodnik's previous victims.