Young Snowy Owl

The snowy owl is a bird of the Arctic. It nests on the open tundra but winters over much of Canada and some parts of the northern United States. The breeding grounds are on open tundra, usually on a higher hill with good visibility in all directions. Since the nest is unprotected from predators such as Arctic foxes and wolves, the owl wants good visibility for ample warning of danger.

All owls are quite ugly when they're born; this, of course, applies equally to the handsome snowy owl. The feet, the eyes and the beak seem too large and awkward for the size of the little bird. Here I've shown a drawing of a juvenile -- you might say in the adolescent stage -- which has the same gawky quality found in some humans at the same stage of development. I do, however, enjoy the sculptural shapes and defiant expression.

This drawing exhibits a somewhat different technique for me. I worked with charcoal on very rough watercolour paper so that the texture of the paper would give the feeling of the loose, fluffy plumage of the bird. The beak, feet and eyes of this young snowy are hand coloured in watercolour, so each print in the edition is different.