A Fiery Beginning
I encountered a lovely bit of synchronicity - as I was unintentionally close to finishing this collection as the Aries window was coming to an end, which helped give me a kick up the bum to start getting these designs out into the wild! (Which to be clear, was exciting because Aries is the first sign of the zodiac - so totally feel like I am winning at life right now).
I’m Jennifer Ryan, a sustainable clothing designer with a soft spot for mythology, feminine energy, and retro stuff (I am basically creatively stuck in the 80s and 90s).
When I set out to create this zodiac series, I knew I wanted each piece to feel distinctly feminine. Why are all these mythical creatures men?! (Male?!).
Aries the Ram
Aries is symbolised by the Ram. And the female version of a ram is a sheep. And try as I might, I simply couldn’t make a sheep cool. Nothing personal against sheep - I happen to be a vegetarian - but the whole sheep vibe just wasn’t vibing.
So I did a little bit of research. Would love to say I went to a gothic library in the city and found some old leather bound books on astrology, but alas I went onto Wikipedia. For some reason I trust Wikipedia?! But then always feel guilty when they ask me to donate. It's a rollercoaster.
According to Greek mythology, Aries is based on Chrysomallus, the flying ram who rescued two royal children, and then was sacrificed so the gods could have his golden fleece. What a shame, right?!
(Somewhere in this research quest, my brain detoured into Joseph and his Technicolour Dreamcoat and I got stuck there for a loooooong time.)
The Design: A Fairy in a Sheep Onesie
However tragic, Chrysomallus was my idea spark.
Flying mythical creature... flying Ram turn cute Fairy.
To honour the ram/sheep symbolism, she wears a sheep-style onesie, in a warm golden colour to represent the golden fleece. Side note: the onesie was originally a hooded cape but it was giving major Assassins Creed vibes which is really not what I wanted for her.
She’s intentionally more endomorphic than some of the other signs. She was one of the later illustrations I created and the earlier signs ended up more ectomorphic so I really wanted to give her some curves.
And yes I did just drop some big time anatomy references there. I have a degree in Human Anatomy and they are one of the few words I remember so thought I'd hit you with some knowledge.
There’s also a touch of anime influence, due to my current Studio Ghibli obsession.
Behind my Aries muse, you’ll find the Aries glyph and the constellation.
Aries: The Beginning of the Journey
And that’s Aries, the first chapter in this twelve-part zodiac reveal!
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