Night Owl

Night Owl, stained glass mosaic on wood, 26" x 16", 2012    available for purchase

A few weeks ago I  decided that this year I will finally start sketching out my ideas for a large series of work I've been planning in my head for the last couple of years.  I won't get into explaining what it is just yet but it involves a bird - to be more specific a hawk.  This bird will be a recurring character though out most of the pieces in the series (12 - 20 large drawings with mosaic counter parts).  Because the project will be so large and intricate, I've decided to begin a study of the hawk to understand its physical structure so that I will be able to portray him (actually a her) as best as possible.

During my research, I kept getting distracted by photos of owls.  After a few hours, I couldn't get the owl out of my head so I decided that the only way to be able to focus on my hawk was to first make an owl ... a couple of weeks later my 'Night Owl' is finished and I am so happy that I decided to go on a whim and make this playful piece. Rather than creating a full mosaic, I glued my owl to a panel of wood I stained to look like a forest at dusk.  I was a little bit nervous about it but I think it turned out well.