A Colorful Mountain Made Out of Paint That Stands as a Brilliant Memorial to One Man’s Devotion

In an inspirational episode of Amazing Places, host Tom Scott visited the California desert town of Slab City, to find out the story behind Salvation Mountain, a colorful memorial to one man’s devotion. In the 1990s, Leonard Knight was looking for a way to demonstrate his faith and somehow came up with the idea of building a mountain out of paint. According to the Salvation Mountain site, Knight had planned to leave a small memorial and leave town, but it just kept on growing and growing until it became what he envisioned.

Near Slab City, California, a man painted a hill. It was outsider art: Leonard Knight had no training and no great masters to imitate. But somehow, he created something that resonates with the world. This is the story of Salvation Mountain.

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.

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