James Prosek Grasslands Painting the American Prairie

Renowned naturalist and artist James Prosek applies his extensive field research and artistry to share the natural abundance of America’s sweeping prairies.

In 2021, Prosek traveled to the Texas Hill Country to understand the region’s threatened prairie habitats, thus embarking on a project to explore the complex realities of contemporary American grasslands.
Prosek’s art is influenced by his science-based, firsthand fieldwork, with his handwritten notes often lining the margins. The book features his richly detailed watercolors and silhouettes of animals, plants, and habitats that reinforce the importance of the prairies as their own complete ecosystems, as well as the boundaries that define them in the present day—from fencerows to distinguishing native prairies from ones with invasive grasses.

The same scientific curiosity, detailed artistry, and passionate attention Prosek brought to raising the awareness of species of trout are now acutely focused on the rich, intricate diversity of our native grasses.

James Prosek is an artist, writer, and naturalist. Called “the Audubon of the fishing world” by the New York Times, he has published more than a dozen books and exhibited his art globally. Andrew J. Walker is the executive director of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. Spencer Wigmore is the former associate curator, and Margaret (Maggie) Adler is the current curator of paintings, sculpture, and works on paper at the museum. Andrew Graybill is a professor of history at Southern Methodist University, the director of the William P. Clements Center for Southwest Studies, and the author of Policing the Great Plains. Matt White is a Texas writer, historian, naturalist, and the author of Prairie Time: A Blackland Portrait.