What art shows us
See how art can change hearts, minds – and understanding.
In our Art category, you’ll find illustrations, films, songs, poetry, plays, paintings and other forms of art that help provide a deeper understanding of people’s experiences of family life – of how people are affected and moved, in all sorts of ways, by their personal experiences and, often, driven to share their thoughts with spontaneous or carefully choreographed, artistic endeavours.
Why owls?
In case you’re wondering why owls play such a part in Two Wishes’ own presentations, there are many reasons. Here are just a few …
1) The issues that we’re addressing – vulnerable children, families under stress – are often too close to us, or too difficult for us to be able to look at them with real-world examples. Illustrating the issues more indirectly – with people not directly involved, cartoons and even other animals – can sometimes help us see the issues more clearly, to see the wood for the trees, and to avoid superimposing our own, personal blinkers;
2) Owls share a number of notable characteristics with humans: they stand relatively upright, on two legs; they have two, forward-facing eyes; a few of them have ears that stick out; and they have a family life where a mum and dad both look after the raising of a family of, sometimes, just a couple of offspring.
The two parents will even sing duets to each other, each night, to keep in touch: most famously, for one species, the so-called “twit … twoo”. They lend themselves, then, to a degree of anthropomorphism – to the attribution of human characteristics;
3) On a practical note, we’re sensitive about using photos of children and young people as ‘stock photos’ to illustrate the articles we share and create; sensitive to linking random children with particular, often sensitive stories, to not showing appropriate ethnicity, genders or diversity, and to using random people’s expressions to symbolise the mood of a story.
Owls come in a remarkable range of shapes and sizes, but they bring a neutrality of ethnicity, gender, mood and other human characteristics to discussions that are often too dominated by these very human issues;
4) And, let’s be frank: owls can be pretty cute! If you’ve any doubt about that, have a quick look here.
We have two owl mascots too, Twit and Twoo, whom we’ll introduce to you down the line and whoo, together, will be helping share the Two Wishes message – of the importance of looking after the long-term wellbeing of children and their families.
