My view from under the coffee table
I was standing in the closet on Thursday morning when my phone started screeching. A couple seconds of confusion, then strong shaking. I quickly crawled under an oak coffee table to ride out a very scary earthquake. Everything rattled and swayed, and in the hot tub, my husband Paul got sloshed around. I was still under the coffee table when my phone squawked again, this time with a tsunami warning.
But thankfully, though it was a 7.0 shaker just 63 miles away, there was very little damage and no tsunami. The only casualty we sustained was a taper candle that fell over and broke. This was a far cry from the 6.4 earthquake here two years ago which seriously damaged dozens of houses, knocked out power to 70,000 people and broke our water pipes, plaster and dishes.
earthquake cleanup
all the cobwebs
left intact
Between the shaking ground, the destructive plans of our president-elect, and governments from France to Syria unexpectedly collapsing, much is in upheaval these days. Sometimes it seems the earthquake mantra, “drop, cover and hold on” should apply to the rest of life too.
a long day
of watching the world burn
his steady breathing
To add to the general madness, holiday season is upon us! If you still need to do some gift shopping amidst all this (gestures broadly at everything), here are a few ideas from the Makino Studios shop. There are mini-calendars (here’s to the two customers who just bought a combined total of 32 of these!), 70 card designs, a dozen notecard sets, matted small prints, larger custom prints, original art, books of art and haiku and stickers for stocking stuffers. May these gifts bring a little peace and beauty into the lives of your friends and family
Meanwhile, good luck staying balanced on this swiftly spinning orb—and here’s hoping your holidays are simply grand!
warmly, Annette Makino
ALMOST SOLD OUT
Featuring peaceful landscapes and animals, this wall calendar expresses Zen wisdom as well as quiet wonder and delight in the world.
The Japanese-inspired collages in this calendar include haiku by award-winning poet Annette Makino. She created each of these collages with washi papers from Asia as well as found papers that she hand-paints and tears.
This mini-calendar measures 5-1/2” wide by 7” tall closed (5-1/2” x 14” open), so it will easily fit in a small space. Major US holidays are listed. All twelve designs are shown on the back. The calendar includes an artist’s bio and some background on haiku and haiga (haiku art).
These are professionally printed in the USA on substantial paper and saddle-stitched. Each calendar is packaged in a self-sealing cellophane sleeve.
Many users of past Makino Studios calendars save and hang up each month’s painting after it has passed or give the image to a friend. The new calendar makes a great gift that may continue to bring pleasure well past 2025.
SUPPLIES LIMITED!
peace on earth
goodwill to all creatures
This set of holiday notecards includes eight cards featuring a snowy ponderosa pine forest with a tiny rabbit hopping out from behind a tree. The original collage was made from painted and torn Japanese washi papers, leaf prints and found papers as well as pencil and crayon.
These eight cards are 4.25 x 5.5 inches, or A2 sized. They are blank inside for your message. The backs show the Makino Studios logo and contact information. Each set comes with eight kraft envelopes and is packaged in a kraft paper box with a window.
Cards are professionally printed in the USA. They are printed using fade-resistant ink on card stock.
Notecard sets are shipped in a sturdy cardboard box.
* Honorable Mention, Haiku Society of America Merit Book Awards *
“With the publication of Water and Stone, Annette Makino takes her place among the leaders of haiku painting (haiga).”
—Stephen Addiss, author of The Art of Haiku
This beautiful book by award-winning haiku poet and artist Annette Makino provides a welcome dose of Zen wisdom and humor for our fractured world. Through vibrant paintings and evocative poems, Makino finds beauty and meaning in the everyday world, be it the rhythm of ocean waves, the bittersweet joys of parenting, or a traumatized rescue dog.
Spanning a decade of painting and writing, Water and Stone features fifty haiga—artworks combined with haiku—painted with Japanese watercolors and sumi ink. Sprinkled throughout the collection are fifteen haibun—autobiographical prose pieces that include haiku. While deeply personal, these touch on universal themes such as the quest for meaningful work, finding love, raising a family, growing older, and considering our place in the world.
By turns joyful and poignant, this full-color collection of Makino’s paintings and haiku is a treat for lovers of Japanese poetry and art. Reading Water and Stone lifts the spirit while helping to deepen awareness and appreciation of the present moment.
Book is full color, 8x10, 124 pages, softbound.
This is the 13th volume in The New Resonance series, begun in 1999 to showcase emerging voices in English-language haiku. Annette Makino is one of the 17 poets featured in this edition, which includes photos and an introduction to each poet along with a sampling of their work, compiled by editors Jim Kacian and Julie Schwerin.
According to the publisher, Red Moon Press, “The New Resonance haiku community now consists of 221 members with the addition of the New Resonance 13 group. These poets continue to appear in the major haiku journals and elsewhere, and their books have been accorded the honor of serious and adulatory review and critique. Many are recognized among the leaders of literary haiku in their respective countries and around the world. These seventeen new members to this rather exclusive confederacy, then, have a very high standard against which to measure themselves, but equally high expectations of their ultimate position in the haiku community. This is the thirteenth volume in a much-awarded series.”
The featured poets are Agnes Eva Savich, Annette Makino, Cyndi Lloyd, Denise Fontaine-Pincince, Frank Hooven, Jennifer Hambrick, Jim Laurila, John Rowlands, Julie Bloss Kelsey, Kat Lehmann, Lorraine A Padden, Marianne Paul, Mimi Ahern, our thomas, Pippa Phillips, red moon press, Robert Witmer, and Tom Bierovic
Original art: Many of the paintings and collages in my online gallery are for sale. Collages start at $280 and are ready to hang.
Museum-quality poster made on thick matte paper, based on an original design and haiku by Annette Makino.
• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 189 g/m²
• Opacity: 94%
• ISO brightness: 104%
• Paper is sourced from Japan
This product is made especially for you as soon as you place an order, which is why it takes a bit longer to deliver it to you.
may peace in our hearts spread peace in the world
This image of a redwood forest canopy reminds us that our thoughts and actions radiate out into the world; this is how we create peace in our homes, communities, and the world. This piece captures the magical feeling of standing under the forest canopy, surrounded by towering redwoods that may be over a thousand years old. The original was painted with Japanese watercolors and sumi ink.
This matted print is personally signed by the artist. The 5” x 7” image is double-matted to exterior dimensions of 8" x 10" and can be framed in a standard-sized frame. (A framed example of a different print is shown; frame is not included.)
These are professionally printed on an HP Indigo press that produces offset-quality reproductions. Prints are made using fade-resistant ink on acid-free paper from a supplier that is certified to be 100% carbon-neutral.
Each print is packaged in a self-sealing cellophane bag with a sturdy backing board and a flyer about the artist and the work. The order is shipped in a sturdy photo mailer.
Makino Studios News
Free shipping through this Sunday: I’ll cover your shipping within the US, no minimum order, through this Sunday, December 15. Enter code PEACE2024 at checkout.
Holiday shipping deadlines: For arrival on or before December 25, please place your order no later than Tuesday, December 17. The mail has been slow these days, so even sooner is safer.
Arcata Holiday Craft Market: I’m looking forward to connecting with people face-to-face this coming weekend, Dec. 14-15 at the Arcata Community Center in Arcata, CA. Look for the Makino Studios booth on the lefthand side of the main hall.
Made in Humboldt Fair: This event at Pierson Garden Shop in Eureka, CA is running through Dec. 24. There you can find my books, signed and matted prints, 2025 calendars and notecard sets.
Publication credits: “earthquake cleanup” - Frogpond; “a long day” - Presence
