There is a shamanic, mythical theme to my newest piece of taxidermy art - 'Conscious while the world sleeps'. It features a painted barn owl standing on a gilt-wood George III Corinthian column base, surrounded by koi carp, goldfish, vintage hessian sacking and with one clawed foot clasping an antique snooker ball.

It is inspired by one of my favourite paintings that I acquired about 15 years ago. The Owl is an oil on canvas piece by noted British artist Mary Krishna (1909 - 1968). You can see it in the gallery below. For me it invokes thoughts of dreams and lost time.

You may have an animal totem at your birth, and it's said some of the pure of heart can see their totem - children in particular. They can be a strong symbol for change in life.

Owls are steeped in myths, many of them very dark; Greeks and Romans believed witches could turn themselves into owls, although in other cultures it's believed an owl would hoot to warn of the approach of a witch. For a time in England it was believed you could improve your eyesight by cooking owl eggs to an ash which would be added to a potion to drink.