Guide to Medieval Owls

Human faces, unsettling auras

Here’s what you need to know about drawing an owl in 1225AD. Bird feet are permitted, but make sure that the eyes are transplanted from a human. Ears are optional, but they should either be horns or the tiny ears of a bear.

A beak is fine, but a human nose is better. Do owls have eyebrows? Try them out, why the hell not. Want to draw some feathers? That’s pretty boring, but go ahead.

The important thing is the unsettling aura.

This week’s owl art is thanks to The Index of Medieval Art, a free database of art that anyone can search. I typed in ‘owl’ and the results picked out tiny owls hidden in manuscripts, or carved into churches. You can find almost any animal in the database, and it will probably have a weird human face.

I enjoyed the pen studies so much that I was inspired to paint a gouache owl that borrowed different owl-components to form one majestic beast.

I love finding these niche databases! Another one I recently heard about: decades of IKEA catalogues. Great if you need old furniture references, or just want to time travel to your childhood.

Do you know of any quirky free databases? Leave a comment!

Bits ‘n’ Bobs:

• Did you know that the Zodiac sign Cancer used to be represented by lobsters and crayfish as well as crabs? They were used interchangeably. I just made some fresh crab art with my new Linocut Kit and I’m thinking of carving a lobster next. It’d be cool if both the lobster and the crab represented my star sign!

• I finally got myself a library card and I’m excited to have access to more fancy things like graphic novels and art reference books. I read the ground-breaking memoir Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, which is extraordinary.

• I’ve been drawing food and recipes more, and I want to hear about the dishes you love. Do you ever draw or paint your food? Do you enjoy cooking? I feel like making art and cooking food engage similar parts of my brain.

Finally, here’s an old sketch that I finally scanned. I love sneaky cactus cat.

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