Sometimes, in the rush to be seen, to be popular and to feel loved and accepted by others, we forget about the simple but fulfilling joy of solitude.
This is where artist Aeppol finds her inspiration. In a series of beautiful and whimsical illustrations that convey calm and tranquillity, her work celebrates the innocence of youth, the beauty of nature and the happiness that can be found simply by being alone. “I feel special from very tiny things - fairy tales that I loved when I was young, some dream stories, tiny wildflowers, and white clouds in the blue sky,” Aeppol told Bored Panda. “And these are a huge part of my drawings.”
Aeppol's forest girl represents the dream of many of us, who seek the introverted pleasures getting away from it all and reconnecting with nature. “If we live busy in the city, we may lose many of the moments we can spend in nature,” she explained. “Especially in Korea, which is famous for “Quick and quick”. But I think that's why the time in nature is more valuable. I think communicating with nature is really important to me and to my work.”
It seems that there is quite of lot of the forest girl in Aeppol herself, who took on the decision to quit her hectic life to follow her dream. “I work now as a freelancer at home alone, but when I was at work, I had to work with a lot of people, she said. “Sometimes I had to work with people who I don't want to work with. Sometimes I had work that I don’t want to be involved with. At one point, I was so tired of doing it that, I quit my job and started to paint my own picture that I had dreamed about.”
“I wanted to find my own Wonderland in the bleak and stuffy city. The daily life of a little girl doing what she wanted to do without having to do in the blue and the wide woods, gave me rest and joy. I want to continue to draw pictures of this little girl who is full of freedom, dream, innocence, and imagination.”
Aeppol aims to capture those times that so easily pass us by in our hectic and busy lives, precious moments that shine all the brighter for their brevity. In order to do that, she has to get out of the city whenever she can. “I was born and raised in Seoul, the capital of Korea, she told Bored Panda. “If you drive for just one or two hours from Seoul, you'll see the ocean with the cool sounds of the waves, and the dense forest where you can hear the song of the nameless birds. Sometimes, if you are lucky, you can meet the squirrel which is my favorite animal, too.”
“I don't know how Korea is portrayed in other countries, but there are still many beautiful, peaceful, and tranquil places in Korea. Every weekend I try to take times off to find the theme of my painting and come back with a lot of wonderful sights in my eyes.” “Thanks to all of my international fans loving my art work.”
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Beautiful - personally I never feel alone when I'm with my nonhuman friends.
Yes! A cozy room, books, a cup of coffee or tea, and your two best friends. What more could this sweet young woman ask for!
Getting wet is part of the fun! All three of them are enjoying the spring rain.
You can hear the silence and feel the gaze of all the stars in the universe in this one.
A night-time picnic, with books, music from a boombox, lanterns, a chair, your friends, including two bunny visitors. I'd like to be sitting in that chair right now! Lovely.
Warm and cozy inside, with autumn glowing outside the window. What great detail. I love this artist. Come visit me in the San Francisco Bay Area!
Fabulous. Love them all. The girl is so clearly at peace with herself and with nature. Great.
She and the dog both have been visited by birds who recognize their gentle natures and are not afraid. What a world this is!
Oh, yes -- she doesn't need to be protected from a gentle rain under a big red umbrella! I love the expression on her face.
Merry Christmas in February! Awwww, the cute Angel wings for Reindeer Doggie...
The joy and comfort of music, books, a comfortable chair, fuzzy slippers, and best friends. Yes!
Oh, let the Deborah Ruth alone. Not harming anyone with her narrative. Don't you see see identifies herself with the pictures???
Maybe she was inspired by The Little Prince, but instead of volcanoes and a rose we have now a squirrel and a reindeer dog...
"You have a leaf on your nose," she tells one companion while the other one enjoys her smile
Everyone gets to wear a flower garland! And everyone is smiling! A lovely world created by a very talented and uniquely imaginative artist.
The old-fashioned way of communicating . . . Wonder what the dog is telling her!
I love this one because of all the books! I live alone now, with my companion cat and many, many books. This artist knows how to convey happiness, contentment, good feelings, and love at living alone. Wonderfully talented.
Meditation in a meadow. Lovely. I'd love to meet this artist -- or have her do a picture with me and my cat who lives with me as I live alone, too, now.
Yes, she is content. I only wish everyone in the world could experience such contentment, at least for a moment! Peace and harmony . . .
As I grow older, I appreciate my solitude more with each passing day. It gives me more time to reflect on the things past, and future possibilities. But when I was young, I craved companionship, and interaction with others. And I find it a bit strange that a young girl would crave it so much. Something tells me that this Korean person is a bit older than he/she is portraying, and is pretending to be a young girl again. Either way, the artwork is Very Good, and conveys tranquility and contentment. I wish I had this artist's skill.
Beautiful illustrations! I love them so much. The color pallets were perfect.
This is so beautiful! This is my favorite comic article on bored panda
So pretty! <3 I want a life like hers. :( Also, I don't think the dog really counts as company... wouldn't it need to be a person? :?
What does this person do to earn money to live alone? I don't see her working.
Well sure, if I lived in that beautiful house surrounded by gorgeous nature, I'd be pretty darn happy too, single or otherwise.
Amazing illustrations.. She is not alone though - the doggy is there for a reason, it would just be too lonely without him..
I am new to Aeppol's illustrations. Could some one tell me why the dog has antlers? Thanks!
I love drawings like these! I have a very wide imagination but I don't have the talent to draw.
I HAVE NEVER REGRETED HAVING NOT MARRIED NOR THE DECISION OF NOT HAVE CHILDREN, BUT TO EAXH HIS OWN! BEING ABLW TO BE FREE TO GO AND COME AND "AS ONE PLEASES" IS A JOY TO ME!
Awesome style. So detailed, so retro looking. I could stare at them all day. Love the leopard-deer-dog and neckbrace-squirrel. Adds a lot of fairy tale
Your art makes my hear happy and I understand your perspective on life. Enjoy every moment of life and may your furry friends live 1000 years! I have 1 dog, 1 cat and 1 hamster and they are so warm and kind to each other and make me very happy and protect my soul from the insanity of this word...
This is cute and beautiful better than living with bf gf illustrations. It Made me so happy and i feel so good about myself since i too live alone :)
I would like to live alone for a while. The freedom and responsibilities you get help turn you into an adult. As you grow, you are expected to make your own choices, manage finances, live a balanced life etc.
I love living alone and miss it terribly. I just can't afford to anymore, it's rubbish.
All these pictures need is a a person who is equally talented as a story teller. These pictures would look as pictures in a children's story book
Kind of a kitschy, fantastical fairy tale but I'd really like to be there.
The serenity in all of these pictures, with the author blissfully at peace with her animal friends and nature, is really well depicted.
As I grow older, I appreciate my solitude more with each passing day. It gives me more time to reflect on the things past, and future possibilities. But when I was young, I craved companionship, and interaction with others. And I find it a bit strange that a young girl would crave it so much. Something tells me that this Korean person is a bit older than he/she is portraying, and is pretending to be a young girl again. Either way, the artwork is Very Good, and conveys tranquility and contentment. I wish I had this artist's skill.
Beautiful illustrations! I love them so much. The color pallets were perfect.
This is so beautiful! This is my favorite comic article on bored panda
So pretty! <3 I want a life like hers. :( Also, I don't think the dog really counts as company... wouldn't it need to be a person? :?
What does this person do to earn money to live alone? I don't see her working.
Well sure, if I lived in that beautiful house surrounded by gorgeous nature, I'd be pretty darn happy too, single or otherwise.
Amazing illustrations.. She is not alone though - the doggy is there for a reason, it would just be too lonely without him..
I am new to Aeppol's illustrations. Could some one tell me why the dog has antlers? Thanks!
I love drawings like these! I have a very wide imagination but I don't have the talent to draw.
I HAVE NEVER REGRETED HAVING NOT MARRIED NOR THE DECISION OF NOT HAVE CHILDREN, BUT TO EAXH HIS OWN! BEING ABLW TO BE FREE TO GO AND COME AND "AS ONE PLEASES" IS A JOY TO ME!
Awesome style. So detailed, so retro looking. I could stare at them all day. Love the leopard-deer-dog and neckbrace-squirrel. Adds a lot of fairy tale
Your art makes my hear happy and I understand your perspective on life. Enjoy every moment of life and may your furry friends live 1000 years! I have 1 dog, 1 cat and 1 hamster and they are so warm and kind to each other and make me very happy and protect my soul from the insanity of this word...
This is cute and beautiful better than living with bf gf illustrations. It Made me so happy and i feel so good about myself since i too live alone :)
I would like to live alone for a while. The freedom and responsibilities you get help turn you into an adult. As you grow, you are expected to make your own choices, manage finances, live a balanced life etc.
I love living alone and miss it terribly. I just can't afford to anymore, it's rubbish.
All these pictures need is a a person who is equally talented as a story teller. These pictures would look as pictures in a children's story book
Kind of a kitschy, fantastical fairy tale but I'd really like to be there.
The serenity in all of these pictures, with the author blissfully at peace with her animal friends and nature, is really well depicted.
