The Soul of the Prairie: The Artistry of May Petrea Theilgaard Watts Born amidst the verdant expanses of Illinois, May Petrea Theilgaard Watts lived a life that was as much an exploration of the spirit as it was a meticulous study of the earth. Her journey began in Evanston, nurtured by the scientific rigor of her father, a professor of botany at Northwestern University. This early immersion in the intricate world of plant life instilled in her a gaze that could find profound beauty in the smallest petal and the most resilient blade of grass. To Watts, the landscape was not merely a backdrop…