The Argentine plains, or “Pampas,” are a sight to behold all by themselves. They’ve become even more impressive, though, thanks to the addition of a guitar-shaped forest created by farmer Pedro Martin Ureta.
Ureta spent decades planting and cultivating this forest in honor of his late wife, Graciela Yraizoz.
The inspiration came from an experience Graciela had back in the 1970s. At the time, she flew over the Pampas of Argentina in an airplane and noticed a farm below that, interestingly, was shaped like a milk pail.
When she returned home, Graciela asked her husband, Ureta, if they could tailor their fields to represent a guitar, which was her favorite instrument. In an interview with Condé Nast Traveler, Ureta admitted that he told her they would talk about it later.
Unfortunately, Graciela passed away before they could have that discussion. She died of a brain aneurysm in 1977 at the age of 25.
A couple of years after Graciela’s death, in 1979, Ureta and his four children got to work shaping the forest into a guitar shape. He drew out the lines with the help of the kids, whom he used as guides. He then brought in additional field hands and planted more than 7,000 trees to fill out the forest.
A wide range of trees makes up this man-made forest. This includes cypress trees, which are used for the outline of the guitar, and eucalyptus trees, which represent the strings.
The impressive guitar-shaped forest has drawn international attention over the years. NASA has even captured footage of it using the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (or ASTER).
Unfortunately for Ureta, he’s never been able to see what his hard work looks like from above because he has an intense fear of flying.
For those who do want to check out footage of the forest for themselves, the following video showcases it in all its glory.