deep maps

William Least-Heat Moon’s “PrairyErth” is a deep map account of the place and history of Chase County Kansas, one of the remaining tall grass prairies. There are maps and then there is the map that shows a place in multiple dimensions. Like the deep, sometimes ten feet of sod, grass roots that give forth flowers in various ways over various years, the paintings of Doug Smith suggest more than the fly-over two dimensional country of the Midwest. Doug lives in California and conceived this series of paintings when he flew over Nebraska one afternoon.

“Old Family Farm” by Doug Smith