Camp Kang

One man's junk is another man's treasure. That's the phrase that comes to mind when thinking about my grandfather's property in Wisconsin.

As my grandfather has gotten older, and especially since he relocated to the middle-of-nowhere-Wisconsin, he has collected, hoarded, and created a vast amount of lawn ornaments, figurines, and knick-knacks...enough to open a kitch museum. My mom says that he missed his calling in life and should have pursued modern art. He has a very mechanical mind, and is often putting objects together to make something new. He is very thrifty as well and looks at every day objects with a creativity that others might not understand. He finds new purposes for random things and decorates his home and land with them proudly.

This past weekend, my mom and siblings took Willow and I to my grandparents home for a visit. I hadn't seen my Harmonee and Hadabogee in two years--not since Adam and I were married in 2009. I also hadn't been to their home in over two years. They still hadn't met Willow--and hadn't even seen pictures of her since they don't have the internet. We were only able to spend two days with them, but it was well worth it!

Here are some pictures I took of my grandfather's yard as we were standing outside saying goodbye to Brad and Katrina. Harmonee is also very proud of her husband's creations and wanted to make sure I had pictures of everything. Here are just a few.

Probably hard to tell, but there are maybe at least 100 yard ornaments in Harmonee's front garden.


Bird houses created by my grandfather, hoisted on pipes, decorated with bike tires....garnished with cow statues....


Little wishing well, decorated with random objects. Looks like my grandfather built this wishing well with hand-me-down materials.


Owl, atop a pipe and propane tank. I'm not sure about what that blue platform is...or what that other pole is right next to the owl.


Some kind of bike monument with ducks and bears, this is near the little pond that my grandfather dug by hand several years ago.

These little blue man was something my grandfather liked to make years ago. He made several of them and placed them in his family's yards. He also makes wolf cut-outs too.


Moose cut-out he makes--with a golf ball eye. Next to his five hundred pound concrete lions, and some more bird houses and plastic pigs.


Who says there's no place for pink flamingos in Wisconsin farmland.

You can see a riding lawn mower on a pole and a wishing well. He has several lawn mowers and riding lawn mowers hoisted on some rather tall polls. We're not sure how he accomplished this feat on his own.


There's another lawn mower on a poll! And some other random monuments.

That tall poll next to the drive way is made from salvaged material he picked up along the road--I think it used to be part of telephone polls. The ball at the top of the poll is from a toilet.

Another moose with a golf ball eye. And a wind-mill thing that he made. When the wheel turns, the man cuts wood.

He is a very creative guy with very few inhibitions. He is not shy about expressing himself through strange art--displaying his taste for all to see with a sense of pride. He's a cute guy, barely five feet tall, who is hard of hearing, and represents true traditional Korea to the core.

~julie