Collaborative Magic

When Rebecca Bowman and Veronique Hahn collaborate together, the outcome is something like magic. Whimsical and innocent, the author and artist have created a variety of art books together — from children's books to ekphrastic poetry collections — and look forward to making more.

Both Bowman and Hahn are wellknown artists in their respective fields. Hahn is a Swiss-American who was born in Casablanca, Morocco. She grew up in several countries, including Switzerland and The Netherlands, where she received a Bachelor’s degree from the Hogeschool voor de Kunsten in Arnhem.

Bowman was born in Los Angeles but lived for 20 years in Mexico, where she wrote books, short stories and poetry in Spanish. Bowman was awarded the Juan B. Tijerina State Prize for Short Story, the State Prize for Short Story ISSSTE and the Manuel Acuña International Playwriting Prize.

Both women strive to create art that reflects the cultures in which they grew up, thus securing the foundation of their collaborative work.

Hahn and Bowman met during one of Hahn’s art shows at the Centro Cultural Hispano de San Marcos, an exhibition dedicated to her grandmother who was also an artist.

“Somehow we just clicked,” Bowman said when describing the relationship of their work. “The collaboration is very interesting because when you’re working with someone else, all these new ideas come out. We balance each other, somehow.”

“Rebecca is also an artist, oil painting and digital painting,” Hahn added. “With art shown at the Hays County Government Center, the Walkers Gallery and The Price Center.”

Together, Bowman and Hahn have created several children’s books, including “After School,” “Mother Universe” and “At my Grandmother’s House-En casa di mi abuela,” which Bowman wrote and Hahn illustrated.

“In ‘En casa di mi abuela,’ we were working on images from Mexico,” Bowman said. “Veronique’s grandmother was from Spain, and it was interesting to see the similarities in our experiences. [Her artwork] is like the child in her is talking to another child. There’s something very unique about what she’s doing.”

“I see things through children’s eyes,” Hahn agreed.

Another children’s book on which the pair have collaborated is “The Mermaid and the Water Scorpion,” which ties Hahn’s European upbringing with the mermaids of San Marcos. “I like insects, so the water scorpion is a fun idea with the mermaid,” she said. As an abstract painter, Hahn incorporates the swirls and organic forms of nature and biology into her work. This also enlightens the illustrations of her children’s books.

“There’s a sparkling-ness to it,” Bowman said. “Her books are wide-ranging. It’s children’s literature and also high art.”

In addition to children’s books, Hahn and Bowman have pushed beyond the scope of traditional media with “Ink Reactions/Reacciones en tinta,” a collaborative surrealist work of illustrations and ekphrastic poetry and a commonplace book titled “The Book of Scars.”

“Ekphrasis is writing about a piece of art,” Bowman explained. “These are all just my quick reactions to her work in the form of poems. Whatever would occur to me. I would look at them and then take a walk, then return and write about them. It’s very playful. But also, the artwork is generational and distinctly feminine. There are a lot of good things going on.”

“The Books of Scars” was a collaborative piece Hahn and Bowman undertook during the pandemic.

“The idea was to create an art object,” Bowman said. “They don’t exist in the world until someone asks for them. Also, with this, it’s [Hahn’s] images but we both wrote poems.”

A commonplace book is a collection of ideas, thoughts and quotes brought together in a cohesive way. “It’s not exactly like journaling your day,” Bowman explained. “Just kind of the thoughts you were having.”

During the time of quarantine, Bowman and Hahn talked about the nature of scars and how they are both evidence of a wound and in the presence of healing. Through this discussion, they created “The Book of Scars.”

“If there was a wound, you can see that there was harm or hurt,” Bowman said. “But we were also finding ways to heal.”

Having worked as an art therapist at the Scheib Center, Hahn understands the healing power of art. She was recognized as a Scheib Hero in 2014 for her work in art therapy.

“They are wonderful people there,” Hahn said. “They have such compassion.”

Now that the lockdown is winding to a close and art venues in the area are re-opening, Hahn and Bowman are turning their sights to future projects in which they can showcase their work.

“It would be nice if we had some sort of installation,” Hahn said. “A place to show our collaboration.”

Currently, their children’s books can be found on Amazon.com. Pieces of their artwork are on display at the Hays County Government Center, and have been shown in the Chamber of Commerce and The Price Center.

Veronique Hahn has exhibited her artwork in several countries, including France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and across the U.S.

To view more of her work, visit her website at veroniquehahn.com