[Art] Barn Owl as Totem

[moonvoice]

18.5 x 20.5cm (or 7.4 x 8 in)
illo's board, fineliner, aquarelle, pencil, metallic paint

Comments

[starla80.livejournal.com]

Why is it that owls always look as if they are staring right into your soul? Beautiful artwork!

[azhure.livejournal.com]

I second that! He is gorgeous, and very wise.

[rainsingingwolf.livejournal.com]

I think Athena's owl (Greek/Roman pantheon) was known to do that. It's been a long time since I've read up on that though.

[lupabitch.livejournal.com]

Very lovely! I especially like the design on the breast.

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

Do you think it looks like a little owl face? That was my first thought.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Yes!!! :D That was the point, I didn't realise that until halfway through (the sigils are intuited, and I often try to guess their meaning afterwards), but looking at it I'm like 'it's an owl!' Lol.

Also, it's probably a 'masculine' symbol, if ya get my drift...

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

Maaaaaybe. Could be, could be.

*grin*

[scarletwildfire.livejournal.com]

I thought to myself... "owl in the box"... an owl within another owl...like a set of russian dolls or something.

how cool. ANd yeah... rather masculine ...:P

[mirrorred-star.livejournal.com]

:) I like barn owl. I have a half-written short story in which the main character was a barn owl shifter. The reason why is so superficial, though (coz they're PRETTY!)

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

*loves passionately*

I just had the need to go over and get some prints from your DeviantArt. More art, more art...

[medusasowl.livejournal.com]

Squee!!... not that I'm biased or anything. ;)

[nikii.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is really beautiful. Such a powerful image. Awsome job!

[weishaupt.livejournal.com]

OWL LOVE!

[heathwitch.livejournal.com]

Oh, oh, wow... Stunningly beautiful -- amazing. You are so clever! :) *hugs*

Is this for sale? I have a relative this may be perfect for!

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

I was considering buying it, as I was the requester--but I'm short on cash from helping a boyfriend buy a computer, and I can always get a print later. I think you should go for it!

[heathwitch.livejournal.com]

Are you sure? I don't mind hanging fire from this if you'd prefer to hold it (is moonvoice is okay with that!) for purchase later. I have loads of ideas for gifts for this relative, so it's not a showstopper to me if you do. :)

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

Nuh-uh, go for it! I've got so many other things I could be spending my money on--probably my first art purchase from Pia is going to be a print of the art for Fox from the AAOD deck.

[heathwitch.livejournal.com]

Super -- thank you! :) I will drop Pia an email now. Thank you so much! *hugs*

Good luck with Fox!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Yes! This one is for sale. All the ones that don't say 'on hold' or sold are basically for sale. I wouldn't put prices up if I planned on keeping it for myself. *grin*

[heathwitch.livejournal.com]

I don't want to step on zuki_san's toes -- so I'm checking things over with her first, if you don't mind. I also have lots of gift ideas for this particular relative, so it's not too much of a problem if she does want it... :)

[sidheblessed.livejournal.com]

He's lovely! I adore his eyes.

[x-raeya-x.livejournal.com]

OOooh red isn't what I would have expected for Owl, but this is beautiful! :D

Early Morning Owl Musings

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

Oooh. This isn't quite what I was expecting. The hypnotic right-down-into-your-soul gaze of an owl is there, all right. I find the red markings on his/her breast to be oddly charming, as they remind me of nothing so much as a sort of pictograph of an owl's face: eyes, beak, and markings.

It's the use of red that gets me. My first thought is of blood reds, especially in the center of the circles. At first, I thought the owl's eyes were outlined in a dark red themselves, which seemed, well, a bit sinister. Barn Owl seems to be placed in front of the swath of colour, in the black section. I'm not sure I recall you ever using black like that in your totem art before. So, black and red. Blood and death and night--not usually what I immediately associate with Barn Owl.

But when I stop to consider the hair-raising scream that barn owls have for a call, along with the sorts of negative folklore and beliefs that spring up around owls, it fits better. Especially with the pale, often described as ghostly, plumage of Barn Owl, which, symbolism aside, probably shows up best when outlined in black or a dark colour like that. I didn't actually notice said outlining until about halfway through this post. It really adds to his presence in a subtle way. I also think you did a great job on the feathers, I really like the fine detail on the thop of the head and the wings.

Thinking on it more, the colors fit. One of the things I associate Owl with is the idea of 'delving in the darkness'.

Flying into the night, hunting down sustenance and what one needs to survive, and coming back out again. There's a very potent and useful metaphor here, I think. Owl can be spooky and associated with death and loss and grief and madness, even if wisdom, insight, and their charming appearances are more commonly thought of today. The latter characteristics are presumably a result of their familiarity with the darker and more challenging side of things.

Thank you, Pia! You've given me intriguing food for thought about an animal guide I've been wanting to get to know better.

Re: Early Morning Owl Musings

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I find the red markings on his/her breast to be oddly charming, as they remind me of nothing so much as a sort of pictograph of an owl's face: eyes, beak, and markings.

Me too, it also reminds me of masculine anatomy, and again it reminds me of two circles of contained energy being connected by an arrow ready to channel that energy if necessary. I love sigils. Heh.

It's funny, when I first started sketching Barn Owl I thought the colours would either be the deep midnight blues of say a night-time. Or grassy/fieldy greys, browns and yellows. And then when it came time to colour, over and over again red kept screaming at me. I ended up choosing about 25 varying shades of red (only used about 6).

[aleia-kali.livejournal.com]

soo beautiful

[poetrywolf.livejournal.com]

Wow. Yet another fantastic job. I love the markings on his/her chest.

[praetori.livejournal.com]

First thought: awwww!

I like his chest mark.

[ebonhost.livejournal.com]

Yay, owl! Gorgeous work. :)

[vyxen.livejournal.com]

gorgeously stunning

Very beautiful, Pia. The sigil is so cute! XD How do you decide how to draw the sigil? Do you just go ahead and make one up or do you already know what the animal would perfer?

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

The sigils come through an intuitive process, where I open myself up to the energy of the animal during the sketch. Sometimes the sigils surprise me, sometimes they don't. It is possible they come from an internal place; but currently I believe they come from the animal itself. :)

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

I like the fact that the various sigils and marks you make are something you intuit for each individual; it makes me feel like I can try and interpret them for my own, rather than fussing about trying to decode some sekrit shamananana system that you worked out ahead of time.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

sekrit shamananana system

Clearly this needs to be the new name for my religion. :D

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

Clearly. *grin*

OvO

[perzephone.livejournal.com]

It looks so soft & fuzzy! The glyph is also perfect.

Your work seems to radiate the owls natural calm & stillness, even with the burning reds of sunset behind it. I've been around wild barn owls before - it was always sort of spooky to walk out to the barn & look up to see the white monkey-faces of one or two of the owls peering down at me from the gloom. Or better yet, if we forgot to leave the barn door open a crack, walking out at dusk & opening the door to have this ghostly creature fly silently out over your head.

[paleo.livejournal.com]

Wow! Barn Owl must've wanted to break away from the nighttime hues almost alway associated with him/her.
I've never seen barnies as warriors before, but then I've never messed with them or intruded into their corners.
I think this art gives a hint about the trouble I *would* have gotten into if I had acted rudely. *fierce owl hiss*

[zuki-san.livejournal.com]

They flip onto their backs and kick out viciously with their talons, if I recall. An unconventional but undoubtedly daunting defense--I have some barn owl parts at home from an old road kill my uncle brought back once, and those claws are wicked.

[copperbeech.livejournal.com]

How beautiful!

[rainsingingwolf.livejournal.com]

Not my preferred type of owl. Cute all the same. :)

[firehauke.livejournal.com]

wow, how handsome. I like the breast markings that look like an owl's face.