“GET ME SPECIAL AGENT CHESTER DESMOND IN FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA!”
It’s a classic line spoken by then Regional Bureau Chief Gordon Cole early in Twin Peaks – Fire Walk With Me. For the longest time, I wondered about the image Cole was standing in front of at his FBI Field Office in Portland, Oregon. Good news – I found it. Even better news, you can get one for your home.
Shortly after seeing Teresa Banks’ body, wrapped in plastic, floating down the river, we cut to Gordon asking a secretary to get Chester Desmond on the phone. As the assistant walks away, we get a fantastic shot of Gordon standing behind his desk.
Once Cole has Agent Desmond on the phone, we see a close up of the mural. Say it with me – OR-E-GON!!
So how did I identify this prop?
FINDING THE MATCH
The latest version of Adobe Photoshop has an incredible tool called “Content Aware Fill.” Basically, you can remove any unwanted details from a photo. Poof – Gordon Cole is gone!
Using Google’s Image Search, I quickly located a match from the edited photo. By this point, I’m freaking out as I can’t believe I found it.
I clicked on the first eBay link and WOW, GORDON, WOW – it’s the mural.
Here’s a better look at the mural image titled “Lake in the Woods.”
Digging a little deeper, I found Murals Your Way listed that the artwork was created by Environmental Graphics, Inc.
Yet, I don’t believe the image is exclusive to Murals Your Way as I found a similar image on Sportsman’s Guide of artwork that’s no longer available.
My gut tells me that this is some kind of commissioned piece made many years ago. Sadly, I’ve been unable to locate any additional details about the artist.
MURAL IN THE WILD
Additionally, there are multiple sellers who have this image for sale including Lowe’s (though it’s no longer available), Wal-Mart in Canada, and Amazon.com.
The Google Image search also found examples of people who have installed the mural, including the late Lorena Holland from Arkansa and a home that was previously for sale via Redfin in Spokane, Washington.
ORIGIN OF THE IMAGE
The next question is where was the image taken? The answer is shaping up to be just like one of Cole’s Blue Rose Cases.
As far as I can tell, I believe the image was originally taken by a lake in Canada – possibly Rainy Lake in Kenora, Ontario. The Google Maps image above shows a potential match for the terrain and tree line. See these coordinates – 48.688098, -93.196247 – on Google Maps.
Here’s a similar shot from the summertime.
I found this image using Google on a site that appears to be no longer working. It was labeled Minkai, which is an unincorporated area and community in Unorganized Kenora District in northwestern Ontario, Canada.
A Re/Max site in Canada had this image of land for sale in Middle Lake, Kenora. Again, the tree line appears to be similar to the mural.
Without the ability to visit this spot, I’m unable to confirm. Yet the landscape feels similar to Cole’s image.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Y28P9AaFM
YouTube User Kenora to Minkai Fishing posted this short three-minute video of the lake which gives me even more reason to believe it’s the spot.
CANADIAN IMAGES IN TWIN PEAKS
This wouldn’t be the first time that an image from Canada appears in Twin Peaks.
I recently shared details about the image used on the Double R Diner Menu cover which came from the Asulkan Valley, Glacier National Park in British Columbia, Canada.
Here is a Canadian postcard that inspired the menu design.
As for Cole’s mural, I somehow need to convince my wife that it would be the perfect thing for our home. Any ideas?
