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The map could have been scrawled for a J.R.R. Tolkien saga. The landscape—dotted by cities but more notable for its varied terrain—features vast forests in the north and highlands to the south, with massive rivers carving travel routes through the sweeping plains in between. Home to giant, prehistoric beasts and playful, furry critters, the land is adorned by monuments of both nature and man. Taken together, they tell the geological, cultural, and historical stories of the region. In large type, the area is deemed, simply, “The Middle.”

Only this isn’t Middle-earth; it’s middle America. There’s the mighty Mississippi River, rushing past the Gateway Arch. “The Windy City” and “Land of Cleve” sit on the southern shores of the Great Lakes. The Badlands and Mount Rushmore frame the top, while the Ozarks rise from the bottom.

Almost smack-dab in the center is Omaha, Nebraska, home of the headquarters for the Midwest Region of the National Park Service. This is the domain of Matt Turner, who creates graphics like the “Lord of the Rings”-inspired map, mashing up park system icons with popular culture to stir interest in the 61 national parks, preserves, monuments, and historic sites in America’s heartland. From here, Turner feeds his artistic achievements to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram followers around the world.

"The Middle" takes a page from J.R. R. Tolkien/NPS, Matt Turner

The goal is to entertain and inform people about national parks, particularly the diverse collection in the 13 states that make up the Midwest Region—sometimes by literally putting them on a map. One graphic contains Hot Springs, the smallest of the 59 national parks; Wind Cave, with natural wonders above and below ground; Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, the birthplace of aviation; and Buffalo River, America’s first national river.

But it’s not just the places. The region has moose in the woods of Michigan and alligators in the swamps of Arkansas. It hosts the launching point for Western expansion and the ancestral territory of a multitude of Native American tribes. In other words, there’s a lot to see, do, and learn about.

“We’re trying to change it from the flyover states to the ‘fly-to’ states,” says Alexandra Picavet, chief of communications for the Midwest Region and Turner’s partner running the social media accounts.

That movement started as part of the National Park Service’s 100th birthday celebration last year, when Turner was brought to the regional office for a two-year detail that allows him to focus on creating graphics and building up a following via social media. Picavet, who arrived in Omaha in the middle of last year after spending more than two decades mostly at parks in the West, said the centennial “gave us an opportunity to branch out in ways we haven’t done before.” And with Turner, she knew she had the talent on board to take the Midwest to the next level.

“I’ve been following him for years,” she says.

Turner’s work can range from designing a graphic completely from scratch to finding the perfect, witty text to accompany a photo of a prairie dog or otter – plus everything and anything in between. For National Park Week, a park ranger steps in for Marty McFly, looking down at his watch with a message that it’s time to get “Back to the Parks,” in a font that’s pays homage to the movie “Back to the Future.”

For John Muir’s birthday, a silhouette of the conservation pioneer is filled with an inspiring scene featuring bison, birds, and trees, and a quote: “In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” A “Star Wars”-themed image reimagines three bison as imposing AT-AT walkers, which drew heaping praise from Instagram followers:

“Seriously, you guys have the best posts!!”

“This is AMAZING! Most creative National Parks acct!”

“Can this be a legit shirt please? Or tank top?? Want!!”

“It’s definitely encouraging to get that feedback. They don’t see this kind of thing on other sites,” Turner says.

This original content, easily shared and appealing to all generations, tends to reach a broader audience and encourage more interaction, Turner says.

The numbers back up the claim and show that the region’s efforts are paying off. Over the past year-and- a-half, Facebook followers have grown by 600 percent, and Instagram followers are approaching 20,000.

As a graphic artist (technically, a visual information specialist), Turner is a rarity among Park Service employees—even design work for signage and informational panels at park waysides and museums often is contracted out.

“There are not too many people with his level of training and skill that are doing this, especially for social media,” Picavet says.

Turner started college interested in graphic design before switching his focus to history and anthropology. He joined the Park Service in 2005, for the first 10 years as a front-line interpreter. Giving tours and working the information desk were his priorities; social media and graphics were “collateral duty, something to squeeze in between tours.” Although he now focuses on graphics for social media, Turner also helps parks with their websites and develops rack cards, brochures, and event materials.

But the social media graphics are what garner attention.

Matt Turner is the genius behind the creative graphics streaming out of the National Park Service's Midwest Region/NPS

“Matt’s renowned in the Park Service now. He’s got a reputation. He’s very humble. He doesn’t realize just how much people enjoy how he depicts the National Park Service,” Picavet says. “We’re a proud agency, and it’s fun to look at ourselves in a lighter way sometimes.”

Turner has built up a library of photos, images, designs, and templates that help him put together fresh graphics without having to spend hours on each one. Every week, he pushes to come up with new ideas. He uses a lot of pop culture references (check out the Harry Potter-style poster, with Theodore Roosevelt in the spot of the bespectacled hero), gets creative with typography (see a photo of six prairie dogs on a rock with “MIDWEST” added above them in the font from the TV show “Friends”), admires vintage, Works Progress Administration-era styles posters (find a bison looking straight ahead, framed by text that reads: “Join the Park Side”), and uses collages and silhouettes to bring together the disparate aspects of parks (for instance, in the shape of a Christmas tree during the holidays).

As in most cases, humor and wit build a bridge with the audience.

“But almost always there’s some sort of a nexus or some sort of connection to a deeper message if someone wants to dive a little deeper,” Picavet says. “They want to know more about how a prairie dog is different than a groundhog during Groundhog Day.”

Turner and Picavet are already drumming up ideas for the solar eclipse that will make it’s way across the United States on August 21. Three Midwest parks—Agate Fossil Beds and Scotts Bluff national monuments, and Homestead National Monument of America—will be in the path of totality, and representatives from NASA will be on hand for the event at Homestead.

“We really work with what’s going on in the world around us and latch on to whatever we can in a positive way,” Turner says.

The graphics are in the public domain, so Turner encourages people to share them.

And as the Midwest continues to gain a following, surely other units of the Park Service are jealous of the region’s social media prowess.

“Absolutely,” Picavet says, “and we want to keep them that way.”

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Comments

I just visited both the MidwestNPS Twitter and Facebook sites, and they really *do* have some neat graphics and memes.  Ranger Turner's art is so cool.  His graphics and the humorous photos really do capture the interest.


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