Olwen.

In her story, Olwen lays living hedges by hand, and her line is this: "I leave a living wooden tongue so the cut won't kill it." You bend the trunk almost to the ground, weave it in with the next one along, and through that thumb-thick tongue the sap keeps rising. Cutting without killing. Over time she learned that gesture was good for more than wood: it's also her way of setting limits, firm and without dressing it up, without causing harm.

I created her simply, against a plain background: she holds up to everyday wear and reads in one go. She works because underneath that calm there's real character, a hare good at what she does who doesn't need to raise her voice. As a gift she fits someone of a calm disposition, who says things straight and appreciates work done well. The rest is in her biography, and there are more portraits from the series in the rest of the collection.