What does a dragon from a Japanese anime series have to do with a Mango Hill retirement community? Quite a lot, as it turns out, after a student’s unusual ceramic creation won a People’s Choice vote for a reason she might never have imagined.
When 20 students from Mango Hill State Secondary College exhibited their handmade teapots at Seasons Mango Hill in 2025, residents were invited to choose their favourite. Among the entries was a colourful creation inspired by One Piece, a Japanese anime series featuring adventures, fantastical characters and, in this particular student’s interpretation, a dragon.
The winning design belonged to Year 10 student Nia Thomas, whose artistic inspiration was rather different from the reason resident Carla Rees chose her teapot. For Carla, the piece brought back memories of her late husband and his fondness for a good cup of tea.
Read: New Mango Hill State Secondary College Now Officially Open
A Little Anime, a Lot of Imagination
The exhibition followed approximately four weeks of work by the college’s Visual Art students, who were challenged to create ceramic teapots with imaginative designs. Several went beyond making decorative pieces, constructing teapots that could actually be used, which added another layer of difficulty to the assignment.
When the finished works went on display at Seasons Mango Hill, residents considered practicality, composition and overall execution before casting their People’s Choice votes.
Nia’s creation drew inspiration from One Piece. Speaking to Seasons Living for its Autumn 2025 newsletter, she explained that her design was influenced by a storyline involving a dragon ruling a kingdom.
Translating that idea into ceramics proved challenging, particularly when it came to painting. Nia recalled struggling with the thick paint and finding that the finished colours weren’t quite what she had expected, although those difficulties didn’t prevent her teapot from winning the residents’ vote.
A Vote With a Personal Meaning
For Carla Rees, choosing Nia’s teapot brought back memories of her late husband and his fondness for tea. She saw something in the design that reminded her of him, despite the rather unconventional inspiration behind it.
“My late husband loved his cups of tea and that looked like a traditional but still unique teapot, so he would have loved it,” she told Seasons Living.
Carla explained that she had voted for the teapot in his memory, giving Nia’s artwork a significance the student might never have anticipated when she began the project.
The residents also recognised the effort behind the winning creation with handmade gifts for Nia, including a crocheted blanket. It was a thoughtful gesture that added a personal touch to an exhibition where the students’ work had clearly made an impression.
More Than a People’s Choice Award
The students also visited Seasons Mango Hill for a morning tea, giving residents an opportunity to meet the young artists and talk with them about their creations.
Resident Laurelle Hounslow found choosing a favourite difficult because of the quality of the entries, but she particularly enjoyed the chance to spend time with the students.
“Being able to interact with the younger generation has been just lovely,” she told Seasons Living.
Laurelle also praised the students’ behaviour and artistic efforts, noting how pleased she was to see male students taking part in the arts.
Read: Music Ignites Mango Hill Community Spirit at St Benedict's College
The exhibition, documented in Seasons Living’s Autumn 2025 newsletter, gave the students an audience beyond their school and allowed residents to appreciate the creativity behind each piece. The morning tea and handmade gifts added to an occasion that was as much about meeting the young artists as admiring their work.
Among the teapots on display, Nia’s anime-inspired creation earned the People’s Choice award, helped along by a resident who saw in its design a reminder of her husband and the cups of tea he loved.
Published 12-November-2026
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