Celebrating Joy: A Glimpse into Cindy Hendrick’s “Thanksgiving Feast”

A first glance at the scene in Cindy Hendrick’s popular ecard “Thanksgiving Feast” reveals a charming scene: a generation of rabbits is gathered around a table for a winter feast beneath boughs of pine laden with red berries. The members of the gathering range from a baby rabbit—who does what babies at dinners do best, dropping a bowl onto the floor from his or her highchair—to an elderly rabbit, who is snoozing in his seat. In between are boy rabbits (whispering together conspiratorially and playing under the table), a girl rabbit with a pink bow tucked between her ears, and several adult rabbits, including the white rabbit at the head of the table carving exactly what one would expect rabbits to eat at a special feast: a spectacularly abundant roasted carrot. The scene exudes warmth and familiarity, tradition and comfort. It is a cozy dinner, there in the rabbit hole, and it provides a visual feast, as well, with motion and earth-tone colors and charm all coming together to create the sense of calm and peace that holiday feasts tends to bring.

Pamela Gladding recently interviewed Cindy Hendrick regarding the inspiration for her wonderful image of Thanksgiving Feast

Pamela:  What was your motivation for this image?

Cindy:  Thanksgiving dinner is all about family gatherings. I imagined what everybody in this rabbit family in their rabbit hole in Woodfield would be doing around the Thanksgiving table.

Pamela: What's going on around the table?

Cindy:   Father is at one end, carving the roasted carrot, and mother is at the other end. The little girl rabbit seated next to Father, the one with the bow in her hair is talking to her Aunt. The boys – and you may have to have boys to understand – are fighting and crawling around under the table. The little baby rabbit is dropping things on the floor. Across the table, Grandmother and Grandfather are seated with another aunt and Great Uncle Silas, who is dozing.

Cindy Hendrick’s greeting cards are sold in gift stores, bookstores, museums and botanical garden centers across America. She carries on the illustration tradition begun by her father, Paul Webb, who was a cartoonist for the New Yorker and Colliers, among other notable magazines.  You can purchase Cindy Hendrick's notecards/prints and her wonderful Paper Doll Kits at http://www.woodfieldcards.com/

“Thanksgiving Feast” is one of the most popular ecards sent from PamelaGladding.com. We hope you enjoy Cindy's humorous visual comment on the Thanksgiving feast as a commemoration of a family's coming together to celebrate this joyful holiday.   You can view and send Cindy's animated musical greeting ecards at www.pamelagladding.com