Looking at Montana

I lost track of Dave Kirk somewhere back in 1998. A carpenter by trade, he is an artist all the way through and a hell of a nice guy. We had a lot of good times raising our kids together. I remembered him talking about Montana and then he was gone. I googled his name from time to time but nothing ever came up. Just recently, I found him.

An email turned into a phone call and in short order the phone call turned into a flight to Butte. He picked me up at the airport and we drove off into some of the most beautiful country this great land has to offer.


Turns out Dave found himself in Willow Creek, Montana looking for what he calls "the best tool store I've ever seen"; quite a statement coming from a bay area transplant. But it is all true, Willow Creek Tool and Technology is a incredible tool store located in Willow Creek, population 290. And no, it's not a quick drive from anywhere else.

Willow Creek has a two block main street and there are no stop signs or any thing of that sort. There are three business establishments, Willow Creek Restaurant and Saloon, Willow Creek Tool and Technology, and Aunt Doef's Hall of Recent Memory, a contemporary art gallery. It wasn't a gallery when Dave bought it, it was a grocery store that hadn't been open in decades.

And the people came. The word spread throughout the arts community and the trades community as well. What was up with this guy? A contemporary art gallery in rural Montana?

Dave installed planter boxes in the store front windows. He created little doors you can open and see the roots of the plants growing. At first the locals were suspect but the kids led the way and soon everyone was taking a peek.

The state of Montana heard about Aunt Doef's and awarded Dave an arts grant that kept shows going in the gallery for a good year. Then the calls from New York art reps started, word had spread and even the well known wanted a show at that gallery in rural Montana.

Dave has kept art works from several of the artists who have graced the walls of Aunt Doef's. The wire art piece above is made from baling cast offs.

The work shop at Aunt Doef's

The gallery. Group show.

The private quarters look out onto the garden.

Dave has been at Aunt Doef's for over ten years and in that time has gathered together quite a collection of artists and unique characters that reside in and around his area of Montana. Many events and parties have taken place at Aunt Doef's and at one of them the resident artist threw strings of beads into the gardens sour cheery trees. I hung out in the garden for a full day before I noticed the tiny bits of glint coming off the strands, I looked up and was enthralled at the delicate and intricate spectacle that was so impromptu.

Just down the road there is a house where a couple lives, April and Phil. They raise chickens and sell the eggs. This was the most 'green' truck farm I'd ever seen.





After passing the egg truck I came to Rick and Julias place. I stood there wondering what was going on with the ditch. Looked like a clean out but then Rick came along and explained.



There is a lake near by. And with the snow pack melting fast the water is high enough to be filling the ditches along the road. Rick cleans them out to provide swift passage and then he dams up the ditch at his property for the weekend.

The yard floods and the trees get watered. Then the back floods and the veggie bed gets watered.

Rick says he only has to do this for one weekend and it keeps the trees watered for a month. Julia does need a little more water in between times for the veggies. It's a short growing season in these parts but wow! what a great veggie garden.

Garlic

Dave took me to see a house he had a hand in building. Sleek contemporary design but for me the joy was in the landscape, "hello valley and mountains!"

The big doors that cover the glass are very important, the snow piles up about eight feet here in the winter.

Lots of cool details.

Interesting use of recycled sheet metal.

So this is the view from the house interior, not too shabby if you are like me and love wide open spaces. The fellow that lives here has seeded native wildflower that sets the view ablaze with color in the spring.


It was great to see the gardens of Montana, from artsy beads in trees to green roofs on egg trucks. But best of all it was great to see my friend Dave again and drive around in his funny car. One night we went way out on the dirt roads and stopped to walk among the fireflies. I can't believe I use to catch them in a jar when I was a kid, seems so impossible now.