This Land

Mock-tiled carpet, beige and hypnotic, spreads out beneath a grim gunmetal ceiling that is broken only by the central tented skylight—once a bright shade of pearl, now as brown and dingy as the unswept ground. The doors that open onto the southern suburbs bear no attractive signage or any indication…

Gilded guns and rusted relics dominate the tabletops that stretch end to end across the QuikTrip Center, covering both levels of the 400,000 sq. ft. building. For several hours each day—two in the spring, two in the fall—they’re displayed for an endless stream of passersby. The throngs are constantly moving,…