Friday, May 3, 2013

Baby-talk: the owl factor

Owls - they never got a second thought but now people can't get enough of them. But hey, they are cute! The rise of the owl might seem a bit baffling though.

Have you noticed how a lot of popular trends are simplified designs? Designs broken down to their bare bones. Often cartoony in a way. Think of Hello Kitty and her friends. She of Japanese origin. A lot of Japanese anime style art is about suggestion of shape, outlines, basic features that play on the human love of 'baby'. That is 'baby' as in young looking, not yet with mature features etc. not a physical baby although plenty of us like those too!
'Baby' is about big eyes, cute doey features, features that do not have the harder lines associated with maturity and so on.
We are attracted to 'baby' on a sort of primal level. It was a discussion when I was in college. Why do we love puppies, kittens, baby animals etc? The 'baby' factor. Their 'baby' appearance plays a huge role. It has something to do with trying to ensure we look after babies but that is a whole other discussion.

The owl trend is usually a simplified (not intricate in depiction) design that speaks to us in 'baby' talk. Or at least that is my deduction.
I like the owl trend. Is it overdone? Well it's been around a few years so... maybe. But I like them all the same.

'Owls baby' by PetraShae

lots of owls


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Treasury tool supported by the dog house

1 comment:

  1. I was always bemused by this owly trend on Etsy, but I think you are right. It's simple, it's cute, it's baby-like cute. I read something before about offspring having big eyes to make them more endearing to look after. Owls of course do have this charm.

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