The story of the bird
A flush of raspberry across the head and breast. Streaked brown wings folded soft against the back. The House Finch perches among spring blossom in the warm, earth-bound palette of the Audubon tradition - rose madder, umber, the muted cream of an old plate. It is a small bird painted with great attention, the way the best naturalists once paid attention.
The print
A male House Finch perched on a blossoming branch, head lifted, the red of him glowing against a quiet ground. The pose is intimate and ordinary, the moment any of us might see from a kitchen window. Rendered in a contemporary Audubon-inspired natural-history style, with a soft paper-grain finish so the surface reads like a true studio plate rather than a screen.
Paper and finish
Unframed prints come on Hahnemühle Photo Rag 308gsm, a heavyweight cotton paper with a soft matte tooth that holds fine detail and deep, settled colour.
Framed prints are mounted and glazed in a classic moulding, printed on Enhanced Matte 200gsm. Choose your frame in black, white or natural. Each arrives ready to hang.
Sizes
Three sizes, all in portrait or landscape depending on the plate: 8x10, 16x20 and 24x30 inches. Prints start from $39. Framed editions start from $99.
How to hang it
Hang it at eye level, where the bird meets your gaze rather than looks down on the room.
Keep it out of direct sun. Cotton papers and matte inks last for decades, but strong light is no friend to any print.
Group it with two or three other plates for a small Audubon-style wall, or let it stand alone above a desk or reading chair.
About the bird
The House Finch is a familiar sight across much of North America, at feeders, on rooftops, in city hedges and back gardens alike. The male wears the red; the female is a plain streaked brown. That red comes from his diet, from the pigments in the seeds and fruit he eats, so the brightest males are often the best-fed. Originally a bird of the western states, it spread east through the twentieth century and is now one of the most widespread songbirds on the continent. Its song is a long, bright, tumbling warble, easy to hear once you know it.
A small bird, well loved, given the room it deserves on the wall.
Full field guide: /species/house-finch/
