Josh's new art series, "Vanitas and Viriditas," is an exploration of two divergent perspectives on wisdom and how we might flourish in a modern society filled with facts but mired in confusion.

Tiessen's Vanitas paintings include a figure named Qohelet (Hebrew for "Teacher"). Inspired by the book of Ecclesiastes, these works represent the vanity of humans striving for power, wealth, and knowledge, often at the expense of the earth. The art historical vanitas genre, popularized by 17th-century Dutch still life painters, is based on the refrain in Ecclesiastes, "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." Qohelet seeks to deconstruct all the ways in which we find meaning and purpose in life that inescapably let us down. He chases after modern idols of science, technology, material consumption, and pleasure, ultimately finding them wanting. Is it all just smoke and mirrors? Is there wisdom in being at peace with the endless paradoxes, or is it cause for despair?

The Viriditas paintings are built around a figure named Sophia (Greek for "wisdom"), inspired by the female personification of wisdom from the book of Proverbs. These works espouse virtues such as simplicity, humility, wonder, and awe, which are vital for cultivating ecological wisdom. The 12th-century nature mystic Hildegard von Bingen informed the character development of Sophia, from whom the Latin expression viriditas (translated as "holy greening") originates. Sophia lives in a harmonious relationship with the natural world, attuning herself to the seasonal rhythms of nature. 

For Qohelet, wisdom is pursued with "fear and trembling," accepting the sobering truth that everything in this world is fleeting. For Sophia, the path to wisdom is re-enchantment with the earth and its Creator, manifested in embodied skillful living. The original meaning of the word philosophy –– "love of wisdom" is thereby restored.