Letters from Austin Lan

A woman with goat horns, clutching another horn, painted in soft watercolor washes

A Goat, a Goddess, and New Mythology

Issue #3 Come Fate or Highwater, 16x20 This month I started thinking about goats. Next year is the Year of the Goat, and the year I was born. One superstition claims that only one in ten children born under its sign will live happy lives — a belief that has literally shifted birth rates in China. As someone who's always been drawn to myth and folklore, I've struggled with my relationship to it. I turned to other cultures and found more stories: the ritual scapegoat sent into the wilderness...

about 1 month ago • 1 min read

Small Moments of Abundance

Issue #2 Tomatoes, 11x14 (2026) This month I went home to California for the first time in a while. I called it my "artist retreat." Away from my studio and my normal routines, I tried to reconnect with the images that make me stop and pay attention. I came home with dozens of photographs of what I'm beginning to think of as small moments of abundanceTomatoes showing off at a summer market, light filtering through trees, and cats lazing in the afternoon sun. I'm excited to see what they...

2 months ago • 2 min read

I thought I'd be staring at the sky more

Issue #1 Letters from Austin Lan Skinny Dip (2026) I’ve been busy. When I first stepped away from full-time work, I imagined my life as a full-time artist would be full of quiet artist moments—staring up at the sky, long pauses, stillness. While there are moments of peace, there is also a lot of movement -- making, experimenting, connecting, and wondering. Read on for snapshots: Year of the Horse Year of the Horse art prints. Signed and numbered edition of 75, $25 A large part of my attention...

3 months ago • 1 min read