I often meet people with a very sparse understanding and appreciation of the midwestern landscape. Commonly criticized for being 'only flat,' the states of this region have so much to offer. My first response to accusations of flatness.... more room for the sky.
Having driven from Minnesota to the Badlands during the first leg of our journey to our new studio in Mendocino, CA, I can understand where these opinions arise from.
     While traveling west, South Dakota marks the beginning of my appreciation for sparseness. The gentle rolling hills rise and fall slowly as one passes down an endless highway. I'm constantly reminded that the only way to see a space in an accurate portrayal is to remove all of the objects from within. In relation to the landscape, this simplifies all that exists to a simple horizon line, the sky above, and the field below. Until the badlands - a place where the lines become much more complicated.

The beauty of this landscape never fails to amuse me.

Hear the hills crumble to dust

Only the sound of faint wind through canyons