Stephanie's Studio

Tree Whispers Shinrin-yoku is a complementary medicine modality, designed to up-lift sub-par health conditions, through lifestyle changes that involve immersion in nature, specifically the wildness, we call a forest, where the senses, including our intuitive sense and ability to heal ourselves through it, is ignited. Forest bathing, as Shinrin-yoku is popularly called, has come to our attention, at a time when the scientific community is abuzz about the ability of trees - be it in stands, groves, or forests, to build community. This, at a time, when we as humans, struggle hard to build and sustain healthy in-person communities, in the face of Online communications. Books like “The Hidden Life of Trees: What they Feel, How they Communicate Discoveries from a Secret World,” (Wohlleben 2016) by Peter Wohlleben is a Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Washington Post bestseller. It makes readers privy to trees’ communication skills and social networks, that is, it helps us entertain

 Motherland Herbal is my latest book, set to be released June 11th by HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins. It is a cross-genre work, primarily an herbal guide, with elements of memoir, and creative nonfiction. It encompasses my passion for folklore and mythology, from the African diaspora. I’m back here to begin a series of posts built around the art within its pages. Today, I share my inspiration for the book cover art. One of my favorite houseplants is our Money Tree. Rich in lore, intimately connected to abundance, prosperity and luck, I adore this plant. It is plentiful, in its growth habit, beautiful in its variety of green leaves and becomes luminous in the morning, when it catches light, hence the yellow-orange negative space around the leaves on the cover.  I enjoy the playful way the art director at Harper, inserted the text, showing the title, subtitle and my name. The cover was a wonderful collaborative effort. It is designed to be inviting, informative and luminous.