There is something about crows. Mythology is full of them. Magical and prophetic, these birds hold a particular fascination for me and have been turning up in my work more these days. I wonder what message they bring.

Odin had two ravens on his shoulders, messengers between the Gods that could talk. Crows were seen as divine, cunning tricksters, or symbols of war, prophesy and death. For the Celts the crow was seen as an incarnation of the Goddess. In fact, the raven and crow hold a uniquely powerful connection to the mythology of the Great Goddess across many varied cultures.The Morrigan, Athena and Hecate among them.

Crows were sacred to Apollo as symbols of oracular magic. Other myths also seem to recognize a special magic exuded by crows and so they are found in many creation myths because of their cunning or special abilities. For the Alchemists the crow represented the initial breakdown of raw, unrefined matter (putrefaction) into a dark, chaotic state. This was viewed as a necessary death of the old, impure self before transformation could occur.

The crow is part of a cycle, where archetypal birds symbolize the development and transformation of the soul. Crow would be followed by the Swan or Dove, the Peacock and the Phoenix, all coincidentally previously found in my work in one context or another. Carl Jung interpreted the black crow as a symbol for the unconscious aspects of the psyche that must be faced and integrated during personal growth.

You may sense that each of these new paintings carries a story. But I do not yet know what that story is. So the story must be teased out of the image by someone willing to put in their time. Perhaps there is a book here…but until then, they remain illustrations for an unwritten plot.

Something has also happened to my painting style. My technique has changed, perhaps you noticed. I feel something more “old masterly” is creeping into my work. I feel I have better control of the colours, as I now only uses three colours and white. This is making the work more disciplined, finished quicker and cleaner.
I think I learnt something critical. Or perhaps I am like the alchemists, slowly transforming my soul, not by turning lead into gold but paint into light.

Why just become old when you can become an old master?

Regards, 

Jake