I am basic, and I like trees. I particularly like this lone tree next to the canal tow path. The tree sits on the marshes, where the skies are filled with crows.
The crows like to sit on this tree: The Crow Tree.
After a couple of sketches, I came up with this idea for an artwork of The Crow Tree.
I’ve enjoyed the meditative mark-making, which gave me time to wonder where this design came from. I am human — with organic intelligence — and I thought about the strange recipe of inspiration that led to The Crow Tree.
Medieval Manuscripts
I have written previously about my interest in medieval art: not the grand paintings, but the weird and engaging art produced by scribes or ceramicists.
I like that it’s figurative, iconographic art that is often done from memory. It is not precise, but it conveys an idea.
A Book of Nunavut Bird Art
I own a book of art postcards that are far too wonderful to ever use. It’s a collection of bird art from artists associated with Kinngait Studios in Nunavut, Canada. The art is so bold and stylised; it speaks to me.
A Patient of Sigmund Freud
The Freud museum in London — located within his last home — has this curious painting on display:
One of Freud’s patients, Sergei Pankejeff, had a childhood nightmare in which he looked out of the window to see a bunch of wolves sat in a tree, staring at him. Pankejeff went on to paint the dream several times.
I love the painting’s weird, sinister energy and I ‘borrowed’ the composition for The Crow Tree.
London Wildlife
I love stomping around London for my step count and for my mental health, and these walks around ponds and canals have taught me about local waterfowl (coots1 etc), and of course corvids (crows and magpies). They seem to thrive in the city, sneaky devils.
A Canadian Sitcom
I am a superfan of Schitt’s Creek, which has a plotline about a fictional horror movie franchise The Crows Have Eyes. On my illustration journey, I’ve been looking for ways to break the hold of realism and direct observation; this simple joke from Schitt’s Creek inspired me to draw some sneaky, stylised crows.
Yes, crows have eyes anyway, but I love putting human-shaped eyes on animals. I wonder where that came from?
A Popular Picture Book
In answer to the above question… I am sure it came from Jon Klassen.
So there you have it, everything that fed into The Crow Tree (that I know of!)
Finally
You thought this post included just one crow artwork? What do you take me for?
Welcome to the Crow Disco; you can try and sneak in, but I hear humans don’t last long in there.
I’m planning on turning The Crow Tree and Midnight at the Crow Disco into prints or postcards — would you get one?
I can’t look at coots the same way ever since I witnessed a coot attack the baby of another bird by pecking it until it died/drowned :’)))))) Wish I hadn’t seen that
I love all of this. I just got back from a few days away, where I drew unfamiliar crows in their unfamiliar tree. When I texted a birder friend to ask about the crows' funny accents, I learned that the birds were an entire species I'd never even heard of: fish crows, Corvus ossifragus—"bonebreakers." Magic on magic on magic. 🖤
These are great! You might find further inspiration from the crow-centric https://urbannature.blog/. Wonderful photos and observations by June Hunter, a U.K. ex-pat living in Vancouver.