Midwest Prairie Medicine: A Photographic Exploration of Medicinal Plants of the Iowa Prairie

Midwest Prairie Medicine is a photographic and written documentation project focused on medicinal plants native to the Iowa prairie. Using a flatbed scanner as a studio portrait tool, the project creates detailed, contemplative images of individual plant species — each paired with written reflections exploring the plant's ecological role, medicinal history, and cultural significance.

The project is grounded in environmental urgency: less than one percent of Iowa's original tallgrass prairie remains. The plants documented here — species that sustained human and animal life on this land for centuries — are increasingly rare, poorly understood by the public, and absent from mainstream visual culture.

Five prototype cards are already complete, establishing the card format, photographic method, and editorial voice of the full deck. Each card pairs a botanical portrait with four sections: The Plant (ecological and cultural context), Plant Medicine (traditional uses), Simple Practice (an accessible embodied exercise), and Reflection (a contemplative invitation for personal inquiry). The grant period expands this work to native Iowa prairie species.

The completed work will be shared through two free public events: a hands-on workshop at Sunset Harvest Farm combining photography and prairie plant knowledge, and an exhibition at Guttenberg Creativity Center where oracle deck cards are displayed as art objects, inviting visitors into the ecological and contemplative world of the Iowa prairie.

The Prairie Medicine Oracle Deck — designed for nature walks, ecological education, and contemplative practice — ensures this work reaches the public