In the summer of 1995 I was traveling in southern Utah with my parents. My Mom spotted some dinosaur sculptures made out of junk in the parking lot of a roadside motel. "Look, there's something you would like!" We stopped to look at them, and much to my pleasure I could see that there were many more of these sculptures along a path winding around the back of an adjacent abandoned motel.
What a find! I was giddy with excitement. I would have been happy to photograph one or two of these sculptures, and here were hundreds more! It took about an hour to look at them all, and I probably would have stayed longer if it hadn't been so hot. There were little flyers telling about the site available in the lobby of the motel next door. From that I learned this background information.
Located in Hanksville Utah, the museum was built between 1987 and 1992 by Paul Turner. It was conceived as a project to attract visitors and is a joint venture with curator Carl Hunt. Billed as the world's largest outdoor museum of Natural History and the world's largest outdoor metal art museum, it features sculptures of creatures both real and fanciful. Various extinct animals from the past are depicted at actual size, along with scientific names and the dates at which they existed. It is intended as art rather than exact science. Butch Cassidy's name is attached because his gang used to have a hideout nearby.
I can still remember how quiet it was. The only sounds were from insects. Real lizards were scurrying around among the metal ones.
These flowers and plants are imaginary.
I'd rather look at art in a place like this than in a museum or gallery any day. It's a thrill to see art when I don't expect it.
Here is one of my favorites - a grinning T. Rex holding cards and a handful of poker chips! In the foreground, a dinosaur pushes a wheelbarrow. It was fun to try to identify some of the parts used to make the sculptures. The T. Rex's head is a propane tank.
These pictures don't even begin to give you an idea of how many sculptures there were here. What you see on this page is just a sample. I was astonished at the amount of work that went into this. The sculptures were so playful and whimsical, just a delight to look at. I highly recommend a visit. Hanksville is located approximately thirty miles to the East of Capitol Reef National Park. For information, write to:
Monster Mountain Museum 197 E 100 North Hanksville, Utah 84734
