Photo by Morgan Mercer
In a small town in southern Minnesota, Matt Eastvold and a team of craftsmen transform boards of walnut and bamboo into modern pieces of furniture. Modern Midwest, April 2014
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If you’re not paying attention, it can be easy to miss the bent green sign along the side of the road that tells you you’re about to enter the town of Dennison, Minn. In fact, it’s easy to miss the town altogether.
In between the stretches of snow-covered fields and hillsides sit a few homes, a grain elevator and a Lutheran church. On the west edge of town, across the street from the Marathon gas station, a bright red building pops out among the dreary colors of winter.
The smell of wood dust and squeal of saws greet you when you walk in. The population of Dennison doesn’t even break 200, but despite its small town setting, big things are happening inside the wood shop on the west end.
“I always joke that Garrison Keillor’s jokes aren’t even exaggerations,” said Matt Eastvold. “I grew up eating potluck dinners and hot dish in the church basement, going to a Lutheran church and having a big family that fancied themselves Norwegians.”
But it’s in this small town in southern Minnesota that Eastvold and a team of craftsmen transform boards of walnut and bamboo into modern pieces of furniture. Read more