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"My Rabbits, Stories in Clay" Exhibit

About the Exhibit | Mural Photos

About the Exhibit

Artist Nina Koepcke with three of the books the finished mural is based on.

On August 19, 2000, the Willow Glen Library unveiled a mural of tiles entitled "My Rabbits, Stories in Clay" in the Library's patio area. The mural commemorated the love and commitment to community that Helen Clair Owen exhibited during her lifetime. As the first business manager of the Willow Glen Business and Professional Association, Owen was responsible for some of Willow Glen's community traditions, including Founder's Day and the Holiday Tree Lighting.

The two-year project was a collaboration of the Willow Glen Beautification Project, the Friends of the Willow Glen Library, The Helen Owen Memorial Fund, private donations, and the City Fine Arts Commission. Artist and project mentor Nina Koepcke worked with architectural consultant Marv Bamberg to make something that the entire community could enjoy based on a theme that was dear to Owen - rabbits.

One of the artists poses with her creation.

During the Library's 1999 Summer Reading Program, Nina brought in 2-foot-square slabs of rolled wet clay supported by plywood boards for the local children to draw on. The children created 18 separate scenes from children's books, including The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Spring Rabbit, White Rabbit's Color Book, The Velveteen Rabbit and Bunnicula. Nina then took the slabs back to her studio, separated them into 162 tiles, then leveled, trimmed, scored and dried the slabs and fired them in her kiln. The children then came to her studio in teams of 6 to glaze the panels. Nina then fired the panels a second time and in some cases a third time to achieve the desired finish. Sand was added to the glaze to keep the fired surface from being too slippery for a patio floor. The tiles were designed to lie in a special 6-inch bed of reinforced cement and sand so they can be preserved if the library is ever moved.

About 75 local residents and city officials attended the unveiling ceremony where Nina called out the names of the children who had created the mural and had them join her under the trees to point out their tiles.

The patio tiles can be viewed during regular business hours at the Willow Glen Library.

- This text was adapted from an article in the Willow Glen Resident by Deborah Taylor-Hollis. Photo of Nina Koepcke by Jacqueline Ramseyer.

Mural Photos

"My Rabbits, Stories in Clay" Mural Tiles

Select any tile to see more!

Exhibits at Other Library Locations

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