kikki.K and the Australian Museum

To mark the Australian Museum's 200th anniversary, kikki.K is presenting a 2027 stationery collection celebrating the captivating beauty of Australia's butterflies and moths.

The Australian Museum, Australia's first museum, is also custodian of the work of Harriet and Helena Scott, two of 19th century Australia's most prominent natural history illustrators. The Scott sisters produced meticulous, scientifically rigorous illustrations that were extraordinary both in their accuracy and their artistry. Their work helped document and define Australia's native species at a critical moment in natural history, and their legacy is part of the Australian Museum's history.

From the warm caramel tones of the Emperor Gum Moth to the vivid blues of the Common Blue Butterfly, each design honours the colours, shapes and stories of Australia's butterflies and moths, and the painstaking work of the Scott sisters.

The species featured in the kikki.K designs are connected to the Australian Museum's world-class Entomology collection, and have been gently refined through a contemporary kikki.K lens. This collection brings a small piece of Australia's natural world into the everyday, combining thoughtful design with the kaleidoscopic beauty of nature.

A diary or calendar is more than a practical tool. It becomes a place to capture ideas, memories, plans and moments of inspiration. This year's collection is inspired by the remarkable work of Harriet and Helena Scott, two of Australia's earliest natural history artists.

The Scott sisters were amongst the first to illustrate some of Australia's incredible moths and butterflies. Their meticulous record keeping, as well as their treasure trove of nature illustrations and paintings, are now in the custodianship of the Australian Museum in Sydney.

Harriet (1830–1907) and Helena Scott (1832–1910) were raised in Sydney by their entomologist father, Alexander Walker Scott, the sisters developed an extraordinary talent for capturing the natural world with both scientific precision and artistic beauty.

Their most significant achievement was illustrating Australian Lepidoptera and Their Transformations (1860s), a landmark work documenting the life cycles of Australia's moths and butterflies. At a time when women were barred from universities and scientific societies, Harriet and Helena produced illustrations so accurate that they remain valuable scientific references today.

Their original artworks and papers are now held in the Australian Museum's collection, forming a treasured record of 19th-century natural history. It's this archive that the delicate detail of a butterfly's wing, the staged illustrations of a moth's transformation inspired the kikki.K x Australian Museum 2027 diary and calendar collection, bringing the Scott sisters' extraordinary work to a new generation as part of the AM's 200th anniversary celebrations.