ORIGINAL ART – ‘Mistique’, Greater Sooty Owl

Description

‘Mistique’

2023
Ink and watercolour
290mm x 380mm
by Shannon Dwyer

Certificate of Authenticity information:

‘Mistique’ was created using a traditional nib dip pen and ink, along with professional-grade watercolours executed on 425gsm 100% cotton rag watercolour paper. This original artwork includes the ‘Shannon Dwyer Original’ embossment and hand-penned signature validating it as an original artwork of Shannon Dwyer.

The Greater Sooty Owl is an Australian bird that neither Shannon, nor anyone, is capable of ignoring. Its large, expressive eyes seem to hold you in place. Just mesmerising! Its captivating beauty, mystique and enigmatic nature were simply too powerful a subject for Shannon’s brush to ignore! It felt as though the spirit of the owl virtually painted itself – just try to look away!

The Greater Sooty Owl is a large and impressive species of owl found in Australia. Their sooty-grey plumage provides excellent camouflage in their forest habitat, where they primarily hunt at night. Equipped with keen senses that allow them to locate prey in complete darkness, their silent flight and stealth make them efficient predators. In some Aboriginal cultures, it is believed that the Greater Sooty Owl has the power to help guide the spirits of the dead to the afterlife. It is said that the owl can communicate with the spirits and help them on their journey. Despite their impressive appearance and hunting skills, the Greater Sooty Owl is generally shy and elusive, and rarely seen by humans in the wild. Unfortunately, they are a threatened species due to habitat loss and fragmentation due to deforestation and land clearing for agriculture and urbanization. The species is also vulnerable to other threats such as climate change, wildfires and predation by introduced predators such as feral cats. Conservation Status: Near Threatened.

*Artwork price includes signed original artwork, Certificate of Authenticity and free delivery within Australia*

Artwork is unframed so you don’t pay unnecessary freight costs and will be able to choose the frame of your liking.
This piece will be delivered in a large reinforced postage tube, rolled securely in (and protected by) acid-free tissue paper.

Framing tips and suggestions:
This piece is best ‘float-mounted’ and framed behind glass.
‘Float-mounting’ allows the paper to have a bit of ‘freedom’ which watercolour paper often needs as its rarely perfectly ‘flat’. By ‘mounting’ the artwork, it showcases the raw edges of the watercolour paper and subtle wave of the paper to enhance the the fact that its an original artwork with delicious ‘imperfections’.