Striking owl by Oaxacan woodcarving artist Francisca Calvo. Francisca is one of the few women carvers in Oaxaca, and her work is immediately recognizable for its bold, dramatic forms. This owl is a perfect example: she carved it low and wide-winged, the wings swept forward and down as if the bird were enveloping itself in its own embrace, a sweeping, dramatic movement that gives the piece a sense of power and mystery.
The ear tufts are long, dramatic, curving horns painted in deep blue with concentric circles, more Viking helmet than owl ear, and completely original. They give the piece an almost mythological quality, and fittingly so — in Mesoamerican tradition, the owl was a creature of deep wisdom and a keeper of hidden knowledge, a messenger between the visible world and the sacred.
This owl is not watching quietly from a branch. It has landed, and it has a message to relay!
