Detmold's technique in oils rendered a very smooth, almost enamelled surface, which he could have learnt from the still life painter Laurence Biddle, with whom Detmold lived at his sister's house in Montgomeryshire. A reclusive and particular artist and illustrator, he was obsessively interested in natural history and his watercolours (his usual media) are fantastically delicate .

Detmold sought 'a synthesis of decorative effect and the realistic emphasis of his subject matter. He achieved this in some extraordinary ways, with the subject and the setting often in an incongruous juxtaposition, creating a surreal or dreamlike effect.' (David Larkin, The Fantastic Creatures of Edward Julius Detmold, Pan Books, London, 1976).