Photo heavy (even for me) trip out of town that doesn't include recycling

This last Tuesday I took my friend Sally to another town nearby.  I felt so guilty, because I had forgotten her birthday which was the previous Saturday (March 28).  I had reminded her about this artist, Phil Epp, whose art is all around the town we were about to visit.  See more of his art here, here, here, here, and his web site here.  His work has been described as having low horizons in which his famous stylized clouds and sky are often the dominant feature.  We had found some of his work in El Dorado, KS when we visited one year during Smithsonian Day.

The first stop was at a hospital.  This is the rotunda surrounding many offices.

Of course I had to put my camera to work, because the last time I was here, I had a lousy camera.

I got a bit carried away

making sure I had captured all the images.

The art goes from spring to summer to autumn to winter.

Stylized art yes, but with a touch of realism for anyone who lives in this area.

I held Sally's purse while she took a few photos.

She seemed to enjoy the experience,

even though it didn't take long to get

many photos.  I've really liked Epp's work from the first time I saw his art.

Then it was off to lunch. 

Sally had never been here, but she found their web site prior to our visit,

and was excited to try their food.

We looked through their lunch menu and chose the regular combo, which included your choice of two,

soup, salad, or sandwich, with unlimited returns to the soup and/or salad bar. 

Sally chose a sandwich and salad,

while I chose soup and salad.  The cost for each was $9.89 (USD) plus tax.  I was happy to pay because it was, after all, Sally's birthday celebration!

Then, during the heat of the day (yep, it was one of those really hot, sunny Kansas days)

we headed north of town to the Blue Sky Sculpture.  I remembered telling Sally once we saw the water tower, we would know we were close. 

Although Sally didn't want to walk to the sculpture, I didn't mind since I had been all over it before.  However, I never saw Epp's name until I saw it through my viewfinder this time around.

If you want to see the first trip I took and the back side of the sculpture,

please go here.   The photos are surprisingly better than I remember them being.  And there's even more information about Epp than I managed to provide here.  So, please see my previous visit if you are new to my blog.

What a blessing my new camera is.  I was able to zoom in close enough to not just see the water tower, 

but also to take in the beauty of the clouds Epp painted for it.

I took a few more shots of the sculpture

until Sally got bored


and was ready to

return home.

Thanks for your visit, and I hope you enjoy this "off the beaten path" journey Sally and I took on Tuesday.  Thanks, too for your continued support of my art and photography.  More recycled, reused, or repurposed projects will appear tomorrow.