Change Is Coming #98 Penny Postcard Art

Change is Coming — Janet Chui

Inspiration / About the Art: I love pennies for their colour, and my ideas for my piece (since I regard myself more an illustrator than artist) really wanted the penny to be integral to the story in the image. In the end I landed on the idea of two children on a mad adventure (perhaps in a dream) delivering the penny via pigeon post. In this way I wanted to capture both hope and a flight of the imagination! Originally I had planned on making a small pocket in the painting where the penny could be slipped into place under the boy’s arm, but as it turned out, my husband had given all our foreign coins away! (We used to live in the States, but are now in Singapore.) I could only paint a penny into the picture for the moment. (I’m happy to let Jeffrey attach a second-generation penny to the piece!) This painting was done by many layers of watercolour on Arches hotpress paper, and I’m sorry to say, I’m partial to groan-worthy titles.

Significance of the Number: I chose 98 because I like both 8 and 9 for their curvy shapes, and they’re also regarded as lucky numbers by the Chinese.

Materials: Watercolours on Arches hotpress

Size: 5 inches x 7 inches

About the Artist: Janet Chui enjoys painting, tinkering with websites, reading history, and designing books. She runs Two Cranes Press with husband Jason Erik Lundberg, and illustrated and co-edited The Field Guide to Surreal Botany, which earned her a place among the finalists for the 2009 World Fantasy Award for Best Artist. She currently lives in Singapore, country of her birth, with Jason and newborn daughter Anya.

To learn more about Janet’s work at JanetChui.net and you can also follow her on twitter under the name @marrael

Price: This piece is not currently for sale: There are great reasons to purchase Penny Experiment art. If you would like to purchase Change is Coming #98 or other artwork from this 100 Penny Postcard Art series, please email me and I will put you on my list to inform when this series is for sale.