Fantastic Artwork on the long drive to South Dakota

We left Dickinson on Sunday morning, first in the rain, but then the sun came out again during our drive on North Dakota's Enchanted Highway (right photo) - a collection of the world's largest scrap metal sculptures along a 32 mi long strip of road. 

In Lemmon, just after we had crossed the border into South Dakota, we sort of stayed with the topic and had a wonderful visit with famous sculptur John Lopez scheduled. Lemmon isn't really a big town with its population of about 1.200 and a pretty dusty Main Street. We found the "Kokomo Gallery" easily and Lopez showed us around. We had no idea before about what he is doing and how famous he is! 

Born and raised on a ranch in Western South Dakota, his western, rodeo and prairie wildlife theme bronzes and scrap metal pieces (he calls it "Hybrid Metal Art" himself - a sculptural fusion of figurative and funk, old iron and bronze) are to be found all over the country and even in Europe, mostly in public spaces and created on commission. Lopez is a well-known sculptor, his work in high demand.

We visited his gallery with the buffalo as a centerpiece (photo above) -  a fantastic artwork, incorporating portraits of General Custer and Sitting Bull - whose homelands were here. In his workshop out on the ranch we saw what parts he's using and how he's doing it. Also, that's the place, where he and his family breed and train horses (on the photo Lopez with his horse Arrow). 

 

Adjacent to the "Kokomo Inn" are two more lots/buildings where he plans to open a new art space. Friends from Nigeria painted murals, there is a sculpture garden with Japanese elements, and, on the other side of the building a little park with a cowboy sculpture - a portrait of his dad. His more "classical" bronze style shows in portraits like the one of Buffalo Bill (photo far below).

 

He also created a scrap iron T-Rex in Faith, SD, in honor of the largest T-Rex ever found by the name of Sue. The original is now exhibited in Chicago's Field Museum. In Hill City (our next destination) he built a life-size hybrid metal horse sculpture, in Rapid City he created several "presidents" (see following blogpost) and for Washington, DC, a group of three bison is about to be dedicated!

 

After lunch with John in a chinese (!) restaurant on Main Street Lemmon we stopped at the Petrified Wood Park in Lemmon before heading to Faith, the birthplace of Sue.

On an endlessly appearing, deserted road we drove south towards Rapid City/South Dakota, with a stop in Sturgis, place of pilgrimage for all bikers (photo below). 

 

At the end of the day, we had put in about 340 km (550 m). Nevertheless, we went for a walk through Rapid City, the gateway to the Black Hills and to Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse. 

Unfortunately, on a Sunday late afternoon stores like famous "Prairie Edge" (Indian & other artwork and souvenirs) - on the photo below - was closed, therefore we just checked out Lopez' presidents (bronze sculptures) and called it a day in the Firehouse Brew pub.