Wabi-Sabi  is a nature-based Japanese aesthetic style that evolved from the beauty found in formal Japanese tea ceremonies and Zen Buddhism. It is an abstract, minimalistic but fundamentally organic style. By focusing on the minor details of everyday objects, Wabi-Sabi achieves a zen-like sensibility: "things wabi-sabi are appreciated only through direct contact and use;...have no need for the reassurance of status or the validation of market culture...no need for documentation of provenance...in no way depend on knowledge of the creator's background or personality...".*  

Marianne Hornbuckle, William Preston, and Connie Schaekel have incorporated Wabi-Sabi style and philosophy into their art. Ms. Hornbuckle creates abstract monotypes and paintings that suggest natural process to the viewer using irregular, earthy and simple forms. Mr. Preston uses the Japanese sumi-e style of ink and brush painting to express his acceptance of life. His minimalist technique reflects the basic tenets of Wabi-Sabi - purging the unnecessary while focusing on the intrinsic. Ms. Schaekel uses found, natural materials to create sculpture with Wabi-Sabi elements. By using materials that are frequently in some stage of decay, she shares with the viewer an understanding of the devolving nature of Wabi-Sabi.

*Leonard Koren, Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets and Philosophers,
Stone Bridge Press, Berkeley, CA, 1994.  Excerpted by permission of the author.