When one is footloose and fancy-free, nothing fills the time like having pets like cats (Fadilah Karim showed her cat in the FURiends group exhibition in December 2020) and rabbits, both adorable and affectionate creatures. A rabbit poses relationship problems: How do you play with a rabbit, with toys and how? Here, the owner keeps a restraining hand on a light-brown rabbit lying on the floor, maybe to ease its boredom and hers. The furry touch offers a salving mood, for both human and animal, and rabbits also like a back rub. Trust is built over time, and time for a rabbit is between five years to as long as 12 years. Fadilah Karim captures an intimate moment with the pet rabbit, the soothing light-brown tones setting the mood. Pure reciprocal joy spent with the pet: No convoluted Alice in Wonderland adventure. It came as a great fillip to Fadilah Karim, known for her enigmatic figures, when she was given a veritable survey exhibition, A Decade (2010-2020), by Segaris Art Centre in January 2021. It traced her development with growing-up pangs and angst right to marriage and motherhood, with her daughter Aira spending time with her at her studio. A clutch of awards like Young Guns (2013), Action Portrait (Malacca, 2007), Incentive Award at Shah Alam Open Show, 2nd Prize Tanjong Heritage (2007) plus a two-month mentorship under Amron Omar in 2010, and a MFA at the University Institute of Technology Mara (2013) creamed her career path. And her first solo, Vague, at Pace Gallery, Petaling Jaya, in 2012, was her starting point.