March 12, 2025, marked one year since The Rabbit hOle opened its doors to the public. We celebrated the momentous occasion with two events featuring Caldecott Honor recipient and internationally acclaimed artist, Christian Robinson.
This was Christian’s first visit to The Rabbit hOle and it was especially meaningful because the life-size interactive version of the bus from Last Stop on Market Street was the first complete exhibit The Rabbit hOle built in 2019. It was an invaluable way, prior to opening the museum, for hundreds of donors and community members to experience the range and quality of immersive exhibits The Rabbit hOle was planning to create.
“The level of detail and craftsmanship in creating this experience is mind-blowing,” Christian reflected in a recent post on his substack Today’s Special, about his visit. “As a creator, seeing something I had some part in have a second life and be experienced by more people in new ways is truly unimaginable, and something I’m still processing. I just know I’m honored and filled with gratitude by the level of care and love that fills that space. They took something that was an everyday experience that I didn’t fully appreciate as a child — waiting at the bus stop with my grandmother — and turned into an attraction, something to get in line for and cherish.”
The festivities kicked off Saturday, March 15, with an adults-only birthday party that included a conversation with Christian and Rabbit hOle co-directors Deb Pettid and Pete Cowdin. Rabbit hOle board member and local educator Billie Howard Barnes, who provided the narration for the Last Stop on Market Street exhibit, gave a heartfelt welcome to everyone and led attendees in singing “Happy Birthday” to The Rabbit hOle.
The evening party also included a hands-on collage activity in our maker space, music from our friends at American Wild Ensemble live screen-printing in our print shop, delicious bites, birthday cake, and a featured margarita cocktail, aptly named, “Today’s Special”.
On Sunday, Christian took part in a series of presentations and special family print workshops in which participants used pastel crayons to create silkscreen monoprints of trees, moons, cars and butterflies inspired by Christian’s illustrations. The colorful pastel drawings were transferred from screen to paper with stunning results!
Paper cut-out people and collage prints from both events will be used to make a 10-foot commemorative community mural that will be installed inside the church in the The Rabbit hOle’s Last Stop on Market Street exhibit on the second floor of the museum.
Christian’s visit also included the launch of a new Rabbit hOle limited edition print series that will continue through 2025. He did another lovely post on his substack about this.
Throughout the coming year, visiting children’s book creators will be invited to respond to the prompt: “Reading is Resistance”. In collaboration with The Rabbit hOle’s Print Shop, we will create a limited run of signed prints which we will sell at events and in our bookstore, Lucky Rabbit Books. A signed portfolio edition of all of the prints will be assembled for sale at the end of the year - a true collector’s item! Stay tuned for more details about future collaborations.
