Letters from Jane
Every month, I write and illustrate a letter from the perspective of Jane, a zoologist traveling through rainforests, deserts and mangroves to find spectacular, lesser known animals.
The letters get shipped out every 12th of the month, you can subscribe here and follow her travel through Africa or Oceania here.
Letters from Jane started as an idea during the pandemic, combining my love for wildlife illustration with the longing for some personal, positive physical mail. As a child, I devoured information on animals and ecosystems, and dreamed of a pen-pal I’d write to in code. I dropped the code, but with Letters from Jane, I aim to invoke the wonder of our natural world and make that personal connection with personalised handwritten letters.
Put on your best David Attenborough or Jane Goodall voice, and wander into a timeless world filled with science-based descriptions and facts about lesser known animals, accompanied by beautiful watercolour illustrations.
I use dip pen, ink and watercolours to create these stories, after careful research and storyline planning. The letters are thus filled with field notes, animal observations and natural phenomena, loosely tied together by tales about the research crew and the travels between the places they visit. They are printed on heavy Biotop (FSC) paper, I then personalize them by hand for each recipient (Dear Name(s)). The letters are shipped in an old-fashioned kraft envelope for the full nostalgia feeling of receiving authentic hard-copy mail.
Jane and her team of scientists are currently traveling through Oceania, after having spent 12 months in Africa. You can get a subscription for either or both on Ko-Fi on which you pay monthly, giving you the lowest price and most flexibility with your subscription. You can also buy the whole Africa bundle, postcards or a fixed amount of letters in my Etsy shop.
The aim of this series is to invoke the wonder of our natural world in a timeless fashion, highlighting animals that are not that famous without overshadowing them with the problems, politics or technology of our 21st century. The Letters from Jane are written for both adults and children above the age of 12, or when their English is good enough to follow these texts.
Shipping is included everywhere. I find it very important that anyone in the world can receive these without paying crazy shipping costs! The letters will be mailed out halfway through the month, give them a week or two to arrive.
Of this project, €1 of each letter goes directly to WWF. Why? Because the problems and threats for our wildlife today are staggering, and whilst I might not address those problems in my letters, these animals do need our protection. This way, you can enjoy the miracles that we call nature whilst supporting their survival.
You can get a letter subscription or postcard set here!
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Info
- Heinkenszand, The Netherlands
- info@thebluepangolin.com
- kvk-number: 73987565
- btw-number: NL002356748B40