This thesis is the written component of the art exhibit Transitory Nature, which took place from March 19, 2016 at the Gallery in the Round in the Unitarian Church, and from March 20, 2016 at the Gallery 181 in the College of Design at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. In my artwork it explores the Japanese aesthetic wabi-sabi in relation to the profundity of spirit found in the prairie landscape. The artwork uses encaustic painting in combination with cyanotype, mixed media, textile, and nonfiction video essay, to address the philosophy of wabi-sabi and the transitory nature of birth, growth, and decay.

This text documents my intention in creating the artwork. It also documents the physical methods of creating the artwork and the conceptual development. A history of wabi-sabi and Dr. Ada Hayden's work on prairie preservation will place the artwork and explain its relevance in relation to the wabi-sabi philosophy of artistic creation. A thumbnail documentation of the artwork exhibited follows. The artwork in this exhibition is a documentation of my art philosophy relating to wabi-sabi and the prairie landscape in relation to transience.