Year of the Rabbit: Happy Chinese Lunar New Year (2023)

In celebration of the Chinese Lunar New Year (January 23, 2023) – the Year of the Rabbit – we present a selection of artworks in the State Art Collection that feature rabbits.

Legend has it the Rabbit was very proud of its speed and made fun of how slow Ox was. One day, the Jade Emperor said the zodiac order would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived at his party. Rabbit set off at daybreak and when he got there, no other animals were in sight. Rabbit went off to the side and napped. When he woke up, three other animals had already arrived. One of them was the Ox he had always looked down upon.

People born in a year of the Rabbit are alert, witty, quick-minded, ingenious, kind, and faithful. They are sometimes slow to reveal their minds to others, and they tend to escape reality. They are artistic, and they are social butterflies. The Rabbit is a gentle creature known for thinking things through before acting.

In Chinese astrology, each year is related to a Chinese zodiac animal according to a 12-year cycle. Those who were born in the years 2023, 2011, 1999, 1987, 1975, 1963, 1951, 1939, and 1927 are known as Rabbits.

Happy Year of the Rabbit!

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