Owen was born in
Cardiff, Wales. She received a B.A. (Hons) in Italian and fine art (painting), specialising in printmaking, from the
University of Exeter. In the 1990s, she lived in
Florence with two students and studied painting at the
Accademia di Belle Arti of Florence, where she fell in love with Dante's work. In 2001, Owen received a PhD from the
University of London, where her research was on the illustrations in manuscripts of
Dante Alighieri's
Divine Comedy. Owen was a lecturer in Italian with a focus on medieval Italian literature, where she examined illustration and its reception in
Divine Comedy. She taught art history and Dante studies for visiting students at the
University of Oxford. Owen was also a fine-art printmaker and a member of the
Oxford Printmakers Co-operative. She mixed photography with printmaking Her artwork was used on the cover of the 1993
Radiohead single "
Pop Is Dead"
. == Personal life ==