3D Printed Mysterabbit Meditates in Hundreds of Public Places

The world is a hectic place. Even though many people have left behind the worries of foraging for food and battling the elements, those arduous tasks have been replaced by an increase in expectations of productivity that leave people with very few moments to realize how good life is. We adopt a battle weary mentality without realizing that the war is in our minds.

The creators of Mysterabbit wanted to cause a break, even if only a sliver, in the tidal wave of frenzy.

“Everyday, we spend our time constantly doing things: Going from one place to another, working, shopping, checking our phones, thinking about the past and worrying about the future. We rarely stop and enjoy the moment. In doing so, we end up missing the beautiful moments of life that go by us without ever being noticed. Mysterabbit was created to disrupt this cycle.”

Mysterabbit is a tiny, 3D printed, meditating bunny. A miniature cunicular Buddha searching for inner peace in public places. They are meant to be placed in unexpected locations and given as gifts to those who can take a moment to discover them. The bunnies were born as a street art project initiated by designer Ji Lee that led to the placement of 10,000 of these creatures in public places from Iceland to South Korea.

The creators of the Mysterabbit project have invited everyone to participate. Their website provides a free 3D file for download or, if you don’t have access to a 3D printer, they will print and mail the Mysterabbits to you. In return, they ask that you thoughtfully add them to the landscape of a public place, take a photo of the newly adorned location, and post it to Facebook or Instagram.

Their website is already home to hundreds of photos contributed from Mysterabbit missionaries around the world. Occupying images created from Brazil to Guam and Poland to Botswana, they are multiplying around the globe like, well, rabbits. The photos are displayed in a gallery that is astounding for the variety of locations in which the rabbit seems at home.

Even more engaging is an interactive map of the world with pins at the locations in which the bunnies have been placed. Clicking on a pin brings up the photo and searching through the locations is a combination of ‘Where’s Waldo’ and a travel diary.

The initiative began as an idea among a few friends to create moments of joy in the world around them. They have no financial backing and no donors; their only request is that those who request their time and effort in making and mailing the diminutive beings give their word that they will be placed in a public space and that photographs will be uploaded and shared.

As all good gatekeepers have done before them, prior to entering upon the ranks of the Mysterabbit, they ask four questions:

1. Can you tell us why you’d like to participate in this project and what you plan to do with the Mysterabbits if we mail them to you?
2. Once you receive the pieces, will you be willing to place them in public places, take photos and upload them to mysterabbit.com?
3. Do you have either a Facebook or Instagram account? If so, are you willing to upload your photos using either of them?
4. What is your full name and address?

This last question is not particularly spiritually profound, but vital to the real world logistics of receiving the rabbits. I have had exactly the type of week that has made this idea particularly appealing. I responded to their call for participating and am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my Mysterabbits. I will let you know when they have been photographed, so check back to follow their journey!

So, keep your eyes open, you may pass by one at any moment and at the very least, if you still find you cannot stop and smell the roses, you can at least pause and contemplate the rabbit.  Have you taken part in the in incredibly creative initiative? Let us know in the Mysterabbit forum thread on 3DPB.com.