Ad Astra Per Aspera

“Some places are too big to be meaningfully photographed.”

Sam Abell

The quote from Sam Abell was about his struggle to photograph the immensity of the Amazon. It immediately struck me since I have personally struggled to take photographs of the Kansas Prairie that come close to communicating its overwhelming presence.  How do you convey that breath-taking immensity in a small, two-dimensional image?

The American prairie is often referred to as a “sea of grass.” That is a wonderful comparison since the prairie carries the echoes of a time when the land was literally a vast inland sea. That ancient sea left its fingerprints on the land in unexpected ways, shaping a geography unlike anything we might imagine. These remnants—hidden fossils, rolling hills, and peculiar textures—tell a story of transformation and resilience.

The Latin phrase Ad Astra Per Aspera—“To the stars through hardship”—is the Kansas state motto.  This black and white gallery is my exploration of the Kansas prairie and its people—a testament to an enduring spirit, a quiet beauty, and an unyielding connection to the both the land and the stars.