In 2021, I was commissioned to create the most delightful original baby name illustration for André. Three years later, his adoring godmother contacted me again — André had a baby brother on the way: Benjamin!
What a marvellous treat to revisit my fun concept of a name hidden in the negative space of the illustration, brought to life by adorable South African animals!
However, Benjamin’s name presented an interesting challenge that called for a creative solution: The tail of the “j”! While André’s name was hidden up in the branches of the tree, lifted off the ground, this same placement would not work in Benjamin’s case (or perhaps I just felt like trying something similar, but different?!) — the tail of the “j” just didn’t seem to read well, no matter how I sketched the name… It kind of… tunnels oddly below the other letters. And there was the answer: tunnel!
I lowered the name out of the branches right onto the forest floor, which allowed the tail of the “j” to tunnel underneath the earth. The little fox asleep in its den below the twisted body of the old tree is my favourite part of this illustration! I also really liked the idea of a ‘shared’ animal in both boys' illustrations: A leopard! It kind of feels like Harry Potter and the moving paintings — if you’re in André’s room, the leopard is there, watching over him. But if you travel to Benjamin’s nursery, you’ll notice that the leopard has beat you there!
Once again, my amazing hubby, Alex, built a stunning hand-crafted wooden frame for the illustration. It now has pride of place in little Benjamin’s room.
I'd like to imagine that the brothers will share many happy moments pouring over their respective illustrations, noticing details and making up their own little stories, making memories and falling in love with nature!
It's my great pleasure to introduce you to Benjamin:
Order a custom baby name illustration for your nursery
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