10 Years of Gorgeous Chinese Zodiac Animal Prints from IdleBeats

To celebrate the incoming Year of the Rat, China-based artist duo IdleBeats have released their 10th screen print celebrating the animals of the zodiac. The print depicts a pair of rats moving through a tube in the shape of the Chinese character for ‘open’ (开), signifying the beginning of a new decade and new opportunities. 

The print is on sale now for RMB400 at the duo’s WeChat store, while you can also pick up their other prints depicting animals of the Zodiac. 

Founded back in 2009, IdleBeats is made up of Nini Sum from China and Gregor Koerting from Germany, and became the first independent print screen studio in China. They work with a range of mediums, including album artwork (for some of our favorites, like Yehaiyahan, Round Eye, AM444 and Alpine Decline), murals, posters and products.  

IdleBeats began the series back in 2011, with their Year of the Rabbit print. They have almost completed a full Zodiac cycle for this series, with just the ox and the tiger left. 

You can see the full series below in chronological order:

2011: 上海兔年 Rabbit Year in Shanghai. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2012: 祥龙之年 Year Of The Dragon. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2013: 旅程-癸巳蛇年 Journey – Year Of The Snake. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2014: 甲午马年 Year Of The Horse. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2015: 自由之羊 Year Of The Goat. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2016: 丙申猴年 Year Of The Monkey. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2017: 丁酉鸡年 Year Of The Rooster. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2018: 戊戌狗年 Year Of The Dog. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2019: 乙亥猪年 Year Of The Pig. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

2020: 开运鼠年 Year Of The Rat. Image courtesy of IdleBeats

READ MORE: IdleBeats’ Nini Sum on Digital Art and Her Mood Mad Zine

[Cover image courtesy of IdleBeats]