~~ BIRTH ~~

This is probably my all-time favorite Threadless submission. Whenever I make a list or a mental note of my favorite submissions, this is the first that comes to mind. Not to say that there aren't others I like equally as much (is that redundant?), or even that if I were to choose a single design to be printed, I would choose this one (though the odds are good.)

I just think this is one of the most beautiful drawings I've ever seen. If I were to list the things I love about it, every possible feature of the image would be on the list. The soft brown colors. The tiny spot of blue. The short, sketchy lines. The expression on the girl's face. The way the hair is drawn, left undefined at the top of her head. Her large, careful hands. The fact that it is chilly--she is wearing long pants and a winter coat--but the insect has hatched and is alive. Her urban girl look, and the fact that she is so in touch with nature, with life. The contrast of her soft colors and sketchy lines and the insect's blue, mathematical look. The eggshells at her knees, and the question of the as-yet-unbroken ones. (Will they hatch? Is it too late? Is this blue creature the only one to survive?)

It's beautiful. I don't have any other word for it.