Ossuary Studies is a series of works by Brian Clarke created between 2011 and 2012. In these pieces, Clarke first experimented with compositions of two key motifs that he would later develop further in his Ossuary series of paintings from 2012: the cross and the skull. In the Ossuary Studies, these motifs are rendered in white pencil, watercolour and collaged elements on black card. The series draws inspiration from ossuaries – ancient religious sites in which human bones are stored, often arranged in rows or patterns.