“A must-read examination of often-overlooked beauty.”

Sometimes you can walk past beauty every day and never notice it.

If you’re lucky, someone with a sharper eye and more knowledge points it out to you, and you wonder how you ever missed it.

That is the case for me after a quick initial read of “Lee Lawrie’s Prairie Deco” by Gregory P. Harm, M.A.

The work of Lawrie, an architectural sculptor who did much of his work in the first half of the 20th century, appears throughout the Nebraska State Capitol. Lawmakers, lobbyists, journalists and others walk past it every day, and few take the time to notice or appreciate it.

But in this book, Nebraskans and others who have come into contact with Lawrie’s work – it’s at the U.S. Capitol, the Los Angeles Public Library, the Louisiana State Capitol and Rockefeller Center, among other places – have a chance to fully appreciate it. Along the way, they will learn a lot about the stories behind the Capitol, Lawrie’s role in its construction and a fascinating, rarely told chapter of Nebraska history.

The author’s passion for his subject is apparent on every page. And the book doesn’t just tell the story, it shows it. It’s jam-packed with colorful examples of Lawrie’s art, attractively packaged along with the story and a wealth of facts, trivia and other items of interest. It’s the kind of book you can either read cover to cover or open at any page and find something interesting.

A book about a long-dead sculptor and a Plains state capitol might seem like a niche work. But this book, like Lawrie’s art, will considerably broaden one’s perspective.

Frank Hassler, 2020