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"Perspectives from the Plains," 2025
Schwarm’s photograph shows the natural beauty of Kansas. This state has lots of hills and open areas that are beautiful. People who live in rural areas of Kansas or anyone driving through them can view scenery like this. I enjoy the plains of Kansas and find this image extremely captivating.
--Yaressi Cervantes-Rodriguez, WU studentLabel
When faced with an almost featureless expanse of Kansas prairie before him, Larry Schwarm approaches the landscape on formal terms. Schwarm considers how color, line, shape, and texture contribute to the overall beauty of the land. In his own words, Schwarm is interested in the subtleties of the land, its simplicity and grace, and the relationship between the land and humanity. Schwarm is a professor at Emporia State University.Label
2026 social media post: Today we're celebrating the abundance of creativity in our state with a look at Kansas artist Larry Schwarm (b. 1944). Raised on a farm in Kansas, renowned photographer Larry Schwarm has spent decades capturing rural life in the state. From farmers to prairie burnings, his photographs document the people, places, and practices that make the heartland distinctive. They trace the ways that our interactions with the landscape have both changed and stayed the same over time.