BILLINGS — What started as a love of fly fishing and art became a work of passion.
On Wednesday, Dan and Karla Mazel were honored with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for their artwork at Billings Logan International Airport.
Watch the ribbon-cutting ceremony here:
The piece is a 30-foot-long laser engraving of the Bighorn River with images of trout and fly fishing throughout.
"When people fly into Billings and you see them with a fly rod tube in their backpacks, I would say most of them are heading to this river, the Bighorn River out of Fort Smith," said Dan Mazel.
Billings Chamber of Commerce was present to celebrate the artwork, reading a letter from the mayor of Billings, Bill Cole, praising their work.
Stonefly Studio is a family-run business owned by the Mazels, specializing in laser engravings and detailed maps of Montana's natural landmarks. Their son and daughter help with designs and the website.
Dan had been working with the airport for years to get his work displayed but had to wait.
"I have been kind of eyeballing to get this done for years, and then when I finally felt like we were going to get the go-ahead, the remodel of the airport kind of put everything on the back burners," said Dan.
The airport received the art for free. Dan described it as a "permanent loan," with the airport agreeing to have it up for the next five years.
"They found me a spot and I'm stoked it's up there and everybody that walks by, they just love it. So I'm happy that they're happy," said Dan.
The Mazel's work is hung up in concourse A.
According to Dan, this started 17 years ago when his son needed a new fly box, and he decided to make one.
"I'm excited. I love it. It's an accomplishment, but it's something that I was hopeful that we could pull off and it happened. So yeah, I'm very excited," said Dan.
Anne Marie Emery, the executive director of a nonprofit river restoration group, Bighorn River Alliance, worked with the Mazels since the start of the project five years ago.
"They had come to us asking if we would help them with some of the naming and locations of the restored side channels, and also helping with some of the descriptions displayed above. And it has been a true honor," said Emery.
Emery explained that the Mazels have done a lot for the Bighorn River, joining restoration clubs to help preserve the river.
"We feel like when people come and fly into Billings on their way to the Bighorn River that they have an appreciation not only for the wild trout fishery, but also the ways that their support has enabled us to conserve the river and restore it in places needed," said Emery.
Dan will continue his work, keeping new project ideas close to the chest.
"I have some ideas and I can't let them out of the bag just yet. They're coming, though," said Dan.
