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John A. Rhodes

Rabbit Series




Rabbits, Bunnies, Hares, whatever you want to call them, have been reoccurring figures in my life. I didn't realize it until a year and a half ago. I began having dreams of rabbits over and over in different ways: running, singularity, hiding, in groups, first and third person. Suddenly, all of my sketches and daydreams included rabbits. I began to notice them everywhere in paintings, photos, commercials, as figurines in stores, and that started me thinking about rabbits throughout my life.

When I was 8ish, I somehow ended up with 3 pet rabbits. They lived in a large pin in my backyard for about two years until they got a weird sickness. Because of where and how I grew up, a vet visit for rabbits was not an option so when it was clear that they wouldn't recover, my dad shot them. I always hated the Disney cartoon, Alice in Wonderland, but the book was a childhood favortie. Of course, Watership Down by Richard Adams is iconic and I read it in my undergrad. A favorite musical artist, Vanessa Carlton, released a genius album, Rabbits on the Run. I could trace, looking back, rabbits holding some significance throughout my life.

Last year, I noticed that a mother bunny had moved one of her babies to underneath a gardenia bush right off of my front porch. Both were extremely skittish, but I would watch them from my dining room window. We came home one day to find the mom bunny dead in the road running in front of our house; the baby was alone. As much as I wanted to take him in and have a new pet baby bunny, it wouldn't come to me and I didn't want to terrify it more. I just started putting vegie scraps and fruits out in the bushes to help him eat without going out far alone.

This spring, an adult rabbit began visiting out front yard, around the bushes. I know there is a chance that this is a completely random bunny, but in my mind it is the baby bunny grown up.- As the season turned to summer, it has become more daring and will come pretty close to us. We continue to toss food to him.

After the dreams, I started researching rabbit folklore and myths from around the world, and these began to heavily influence my art. Below, I will list the most influential stories I've found in a simple, concise way.


-In Siberia, Kaltes is the goddess of the moon, but she took the form of a hare when she traveled.

-Eustre is the goddess of fertility & the moon in Anglo-Saxon mythology. She was part rabbit.

-The Celts used rabbits for divination by studying rabbit tracks and because their burrows were under ground, they aided in communication with the dead. They are used and/or honored in rituals and mating dances.

-Christianity has largely related rabbits to female/femininty. Because of this connection, they were less favored and often thought to be agents of the devil or witch's familars.

-In Native American folklore, Nanabozho is/takes the form of a rabbit and is the creator of the Earth, of humankind. He is considered the bringer of light and fire. Wabosso is his little brother and through his life becomes the greatest supernatural magician. Ta-Vwots shatters the sun and eventually destroys the Earth.

In Egypt rabbits were associated with the moon and because of this were symbols of androgony (waxing - masculine, waning - feminine). Visuals of rabbits were found in the Dendera Tomb, burial site of Unut and Osiris.

-Holda, the leader of the Wild Hunt in Teutonic traditions, was followed by a procession of hares holding torches.

-In Norse mythology, Freyja was served by hares.

- Tu-Shen is the rabbit god of sex and relationships between men, the god of gay love. He was put to death for confessing his love to another man, but the gods refused to welcome him to the underworld because love is not a crime. To appease his ghost, he was elevated to a deity. He is called the rabbit god and is always depicted as a rabbit because the imperial Chinese term for rabbit was also a slang term for gay men and male prostitutes. Over time, he has been sort of combined with the rabbit from another Chinese legend: the jade rabbit sent to Earth by the Goddess of the moon to save them from an epidemic.


Obviously, as a gay man, Tu-Shen's story really resonates with me and has been the most impactful on the work. I also love the opposing meanings of rabbits. So many cultures see them as regal, king of the forest, elevated, but also prey, anxious, sporadic. They burrow into the ground for safety and comfort, but also have no concept of beyond the burrow walls. Their comfort is literally surrounded by unknown. The idea of solace from anxiety in the middle of anxiety is so fascinating to me.


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Cuniculus


Cuniculus in Latin means burrows. This piece was the first in the series and the biggest. The 3 rabbits are symbolic of past, present and future, the holy trinity, the maiden, mother, crone. One is above the burrow running to comfort, one entering and one safely deep within. Because burrows are underground and comforting in an unknown abyss or dirt and critters, instead of dirt, I painted space. This also makes the celestial connections between rabbits in folklore and space. Clear quartz crystals are supposed to magnify energies so I sewed some into the borrow to highten the celestial energy and feelings of comfort vs. anxiety.



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Solis and Luna


Solis (Sun) and Luna (Moon) part of the same burrow as Cuniculus. The circle is a refence to NASA's symbol for day/sun, and the crescent is a reference to their symbol of night/moon. The ESP lines around the rabbits are visually showing their heightened senses, but they are also the outlines of three cities/counties that have had some influence in my life. The clear quartz was sewn into these as well.















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Universum


This project was a huge undertaking. Universum, in Latin means Universe, and was planned as the face of a deity. I wanted the rabbit to be bold and intimidating, emphasized and holy. This rabbit, like the 5 from the burrow, is completely embroidered with a braid stitch and surrounded by the ESP senses lines which are also 3 different outlines of important places in my life. Sewn into the eyes are crystal quartz and amethyst, a stone meant for calming and warding off negativity.




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Kaltes & Eustre


This painting is a large departure from the previous rabbit pieces. Neither of the rabbits in this are mixed media painting instead of embroidered. The tears are, however. Both rabbits are blind with calloused eyes, but have a godlike, celestial knowledge allowing them to be all knowing, all seeing. This is symbolized by the third eye on both of their forheads, gold embroidery thread and red and gold dyed quartz beads. This image was heavily inspired by two rabbits in Native American folklore, the life bringer and the most powerful magician, but also the Siberian and Anglo-Saxon myths of goddesses associated with rabbits and the moon.




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