Bronze, Signed Hamish Mackie
Numbered edition of 12
Dated 2016
65cm long x 206cm high x 43cm wide
(25.5″ x 81″ x 17″)
not including base
Sculptures can be shipped worldwide at cost, no VAT payable on exports outside the EU.
£34,000 inc VAT“Birds require a different approach. I first make an aluminium wing and usually work in plasticine because the feathers are so thin. It’s about interpreting feather pattern through texture.” (HM)
Found almost everywhere in the world, the Barn Owl is particularly well-loved in Britain. Hamish presents his bronze owl, with its distinctive heart-shaped face, perched atop a stylised curved stand. It is a common sight in the countryside, as the nights draw in, to see a Barn Owl perched on a gate post or field wall, quietly watching. Known for its silent flight and ghostlike stealth, not to mention its pure white face and underbelly and its piercing shriek, this nocturnal bird has a sense of mystery about it.
With his textured working of its feathers, Hamish gives us a real sense of the owl’s patterned plumage and how well it blends into its woodland habitat.
This sculpture was based on the native British Barn Owl, so often seen in woodlands during the Autumn evenings. Sculpturally, the owl lends itself well to having a more modern composition and this sculpture was taken from a simple sketch I had made in my research. I wanted to concentrate on the arcs, texture and feathered lines of the bird to give a more graceful sense. This has been heightened by the juxtaposition of the owl with the curved bronze shard it is placed on, which not only gives height but also a more modern edge. While making this sculpture, the first head position I made didn’t work as I intended, so I changed the angle of the head to give a better flow to the whole.
