the origins of hana-bi

Basically it's a pun on my nickname, Hannah B and the japanese phrase Hana-bi which translates roughly into 'fireworks' or more literally 'fire flowers'. Hana - flower, Bi - fire.

My dad's nickname for me when I was young was Hannah Banana, or HB for short. It kind of stuck with me and I've lifted the initials for most of my website names. My artblog for instance is still called HB-art, a play on my name and the type of lead pencil. (Yeah, yeah, I have a thing for puns.) Hana-bi wasn't the next logical step though until an old boyfriend told me about the movie Hana-bi by his favourite director, Takeshi Kitano and I liked the random connection. The image of the soft and beautiful mixed with the harsh and dangerous is one that really strikes a chord with me.


-- H in Oz