We wish you joy, laughter and creativity in 2023 and in the approaching Chinese New Year of the Rabbit.
Hoping your creative journey is filled with much inspiration from outside landscapes to inside perspectives & travels down the vegetable patch.
Serendipity added itself to creativity as we realised that “Bettina Creates a Garden” will be printed during this Year of the Rabbit (which begins on January 22 2023).
Here’s Bettina the botanist researching designs for her future botanical garden.
Our dog slumbered while the living room filled up with Jean’s colourful illustrations as work progressed on our children’s book.
As unusually usual, Jean has painted most of the illustrations while Anthinula has yet to finish writing the story.
Jean’s illustration of Bettina’s final botanical garden was also influenced by Steve Beimel’s talk on wabi-sabi – a Japanese aesthetic, which describes a simple, transient beauty found in nature that is both imperfect and without pretence.
The concept of wabi-sabi allows us to embrace perfection in imperfection.
Steve created a foundation that helps Japanese artisans apprentice and continue fast-disappearing traditional arts and crafts in Japan.
Alongside the themes of simplicity and nature, and creativity, here’s another recently completed painting titled “Umbrian Birds” by Jean, who gratefully finds inspiration in all the surrounding Umbrian nature.
The zodiac sign of the Rabbit symbolizes patience and prosperity, so predictions for this Chinese New Year of the Rabbit include peace, hope and abundance.
If you want to read about the characteristics of those born in past Rabbit years visit our blog
Inspired by the Hong Kong sea-faring junks and local islands, this was a Christmas card painted by Jean in 1995.
Traditional wise men journeying Asian style, hopefully with a snack of dim sum.
Whatever your Asian Zodiac sign, destination journeys, preferred wabi-sabi arts and crafts, and winter/spring hemisphere locations and views, we wish you all a year of inspirational creativity, joyous laughter and harmony!
