10.5.21 - Bats

 


Bats are associated with negative uses or beings in many cultures. In Nigeria, for example, bats are thought of as witches; in Ivory Coast, they are believed to be ghosts or spirits. In the Bible's Book of Leviticus, bats are referred to as "birds you are to regard as unclean," and therefore should not be consumed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_uses_of_bats

During the Middle Ages, residents of western Europe and England believed that bats spread disease. This is most likely because of the bat’s similarity to the rat, which was usually blamed for the spread of plague. Because many people believed in witchcraft during this time, the bat was associated with witches, dark magic, sorcery, and even talking to the dead. People in rural Scotland and northern England suspected bats of being messengers between witches and the devil.

https://www.learnreligions.com/bat-magic-and-folklore-2562685

From all of the bat images I gathered, my favourite is probably the one with loads of hands, but I chose to work from this one because it was a similar style to the cat and crow that I did before. I think it looks quite sweet but there aren't many details so it seems a bit basic and undeveloped in my opinion. I think in my final piece I would like to include the one with all the hands because it is a really strong assertive image and I can picture it as a tattoo as well.

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