Description
What it is
This is the Wind Cave National Park design in the Scenic Highways poster series, a wall poster rather than a photographic print. It is screen printed in three colors on a 14″ x 22″ sheet, so each color is laid down as a separate pass. The result is flatter and more graphic than digital photo printing, closer to the classic travel posters of the mid-twentieth century. It is made to hang and display, framed or pinned to a wall.
About the design
The artwork centers on the Beaver Creek Bridge on historic Highway 87, built in 1929. The bridge is the only stone arch structure of its type in South Dakota, and its arches were shaped to look as though they rise out of the surrounding rock rather than sit on top of it. A 1920s touring car is parked below the span with two figures looking out over the valley. Senator Peter Norbeck, who pushed to open the Black Hills to public travel in the 1920s, was directly involved in the bridge project. The route granted access into the region from the south and eventually connected to what became Wind Cave National Park.
About the park
Wind Cave became the seventh national park in the United States on January 9, 1903, signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt. It is best known for its boxwork, a honeycomb-patterned calcite formation so concentrated here that the park holds roughly 95% of the world’s known boxwork. Above ground it protects a large mixed-grass prairie with bison, elk, and prairie dogs.
Specifications
- Dimensions: 14″ x 22″, portrait orientation
- Printing method: screen printed, three colors
- Series: Scenic Highways park posters
- Subject: Beaver Creek Bridge on Highway 87 (built 1929)
Who is this for
It suits a cabin wall, a den, or a kid’s room where you want something that reads as a real park poster instead of a generic gift-shop print. The three-color screen-printed look fits the historic highway subject, and at 14″ x 22″ it drops into a standard poster frame. It also makes a more specific gift than a print with just a park name on it, since the design tells the Beaver Creek Bridge story.
Frequently asked questions
What size is the poster?
14 inches wide by 22 inches tall. A standard 14″ x 22″ poster frame should fit. Measure the actual print before ordering a custom frame to allow for any variation.
What does screen printed in three colors mean?
Screen printing pushes ink through a mesh screen one color at a time, so three colors means three separate passes to build the final image. The look is more graphic and flat than digital inkjet printing, and the colors tend to be more saturated. It is the same process used for vintage travel posters.
Is this the same as the sticker or magnet version?
No. This is the large 14″ x 22″ screen-printed wall poster. The Scenic Highways artwork is also sold as stickers and magnets in separate, smaller listings.
Does buying this support the park?
BHPFA is the official nonprofit partner of Wind Cave National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Scotts Bluff National Monument, and Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, as well as the Black Hills National Forest and Nebraska National Forests & Grasslands. Proceeds from every purchase support education programs, conservation projects, and visitor services at these sites.
