Think of the Children - The Plus Paper

Artistic Collaborators Design Rabbits For Charitable Cause

Large-scale painted animal sculptures: it doesn’t exactly scream “philanthropic activity”, but many may already be aware that it’s a tried and tested method for creatively rustling up interest in a chosen charitable cause. The most recent addition to the growing painted menagerie? Luminous QeeBoo Rabbit Charity Plan, an initiative set up Shanghai’s YiOuLai Shanghai Village with the support of charity organisation Adream, which looks to bring out the creative spirits of younger generations through inviting talented artists and designers to customise a pair of Qeeboo rabbits.

Blue and White porcelain Rabbit Designed by Ye Qing

YiOuLai’s charitable work focuses on the promotion of art education for children, the rabbits produced by each of the 12 artists and designers involved in the project will be sold to raise funds for this creative cause. The rabbits themselves, whose sleek and minimal design was the brainchild of Italian designer Stefano Giovannoni, provide a blank canvas for collaborators to make their own; the result is a testament the artistic fruit to be reaped from joining creative freedom with a nationwide charitable goal. It is hoped that the simple rabbit silhouettes, embellished by top talents and sold in aid of YiOuLai’s project, will encourage kids to unleash their imagination whilst promoting the sort of arts education that galvanises innovative thought.

Masha Ma Rabbit Design

Marc-Olivier Arnold, one of the initiatives participating artists, is a collaborator for whom the creative education of children is particularly striking. Co-founder of playful children’s fashion house Ballon Rouge, his company’s ethos is “rock your imagination”, and Marc’s rabbit design isn’t far off: with a sleek metallic finish and inspirational words scrawled across it in rebellious black lines, it reminds us of aspiration and the graffiti on edgy exercise books. But what does he think?

Ballon Rouge’s Gold Rabbit

The Plus: How does one go about designing a rabbit?
Marc-Olivier Arnold: I immediately loved the idea of designing a rabbit, especially when it helps to raise funds for children who are in need. So when we first heard about the project, we just wanted to be part of it and rock it!

TP: You worked with your son on this; how did you two decide on the final designs?
 M-OA: We discussed a flying rabbit travelling through space, and on in the shape of beautiful rainbow… But in the end, we landed on designing a rabbit that rocks! Something that we later called the gold rock’mantic rabbit. My son Maddox decided to spray the rabbit all in gold. Then he started drawing icons and writing words that mean a lot to him as child. Music, Love, shiny hearts, etc…

TP: What was the inspiration behind this?
M-OA: My idea was to allow him to express himself freely and literally let his imagination fly, because the concept behind the gold rock’mantic rabbit is to inspire children to express themselves and liberate their creativity.

TP: And why gold?
M-OA: Gold? Because it is our hope that ALL children have the opportunity to let their creativity shine through.

TP: What other animals would you like to see become the subject of a campaign like this?
M-OA: Many of them. Snow leopards, polar bears, penguins… All those animals that are in danger of extinction.

TP: Tell us about Ballon Rouge – what sets it apart from other childrenswear brands?
M-OA: Maison Ballon Rouge is born out of the idea to create a playful, artsy, and inherently Parisian aesthetic for today’s generation of cool kids. It fuses French elegant style with twist of rock and playfulness. Rock. Romantic. Free spirited. It is something that we like to call rock’mantic.

In fact, we don’t really see Maison Ballon Rouge as as a brand so much as an inspiration for children. This is the main reason why we constantly collaborate with French and Chinese artists: to inspire children to let their imagination fly.

TP: Do you hope to expand into more collaborative philanthropic projects like this?
M-OA: Absolutely. I can’t wait for the next one!

TP: What do you like the most about working on children’s products?
M-OA: All children are born creative, and by the time we get to be an adult, it feels like most kids have lost that capacity. So, I would say that working on children-related products keeps your imagination truly alive: happy, forever young. Charles Baudelaire once said “Genius is childhood recalled at will”. Voila, et à bientôt…

Other Rabbit Designs:

Rabbit Designed by Amy Zhao