John James Audubon
Canada Goose
From $80
This plate is pale owls against a deep night sky, and a muddy copy turns the sky black and the owls grey. Our Audubon Snowy Owl print keeps the whole sheet, with its plate number and captions, in a warm cream, so the white feathers stay bright against the dark.
Canvas, framed or paper
Stretched canvas. Printed on cotton canvas and stretched taut over a frame. The edges are mirror-wrapped, so the picture continues around the sides and none of it is lost to the fold.
Framed canvas. The same canvas, set in a black, white, natural wood or dark wood frame 0.83 in deep. The frame gives the work a finished edge and a little more presence on the wall.
Framed print. Printed on fine art matte paper and framed in solid pine, behind shatterproof plexiglass, in black, white, natural wood or dark wood. It arrives ready to hang. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame.
Fine art print. Printed on 310gsm fine art matte paper, for framing your own way. It travels rolled and protected. From 18x24 inch.
Sizes
12x18 inch, 16x24 inch, 20x30 inch, 24x36 inch. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame, so the visible painting is a little smaller.
On your wall
Its tall sheet and night sky suit a bedroom, a study or a hallway. The whites and deep greys look striking with charcoal, cream and natural wood, and a black frame suits the night.
About the painting
Snowy Owl by John James Audubon
The Birds of America
John James Audubon set out to show every bird in America at its real size, engraved in London and coloured by hand, one plate at a time. This Snowy Owl is plate 121, issued in 1831: a pair on a dead tree, under a night sky broken by moonlit cloud.
The owl that fishes
At the Falls of the Ohio, hidden at daybreak in a pile of floating logs, he watched snowy owls fish. Each lay flat on the rock beside a pool, as if asleep, until a fish rose; then it shot out the foot nearest the water with the quickness of lightning, and drew it out.
A winter visitor
The snowy owl came south only in winter, from about November to February. In Boston he kept a live one that stood upright and watched every move he made, hopping to a corner of the room if he walked around it.
Read the story
Audubon once watched an owl go fishing.
For some twenty years, at the Falls of the Ohio, by Louisville in Kentucky, hardly a winter passes without snowy owls. They come down from the north in November, and they're gone by February.
One morning at daybreak, Audubon lies hidden in a pile of driftwood logs, waiting for wild geese.
Instead, he sees the owls.
Each one lies flat on the rock beside a pool, its head turned towards the water. You'd think it was asleep.
Then a fish comes up near the edge. In an instant the owl shoots out the foot nearest the water, with the quickness of lightning, he writes, and pulls the fish out.
If the fish is big, it strikes the other foot in too, and flies off with it into the woods. And all the while, not a single sound.
In 1831, in London, his engraver Robert Havell finishes the plate: a pair of snowy owls on a dead tree, under a dark night sky broken by moonlit cloud.
Later, in Boston, someone brings Audubon a live snowy owl, only hurt in the wing. It stands upright, and its fine eyes follow every move he makes. If he walks around it, it hops to a corner, turns, and watches him again.
Look at the white against the dark, and listen. Not a sound.
Snowy Owl. John James Audubon, 1831.
How each piece is brought to life
Faithful to the original, and made to be felt on your wall.
Graded against the original
We compare every work with the original as we grade it, keeping the artist’s colours true while bringing back their depth and glow. Every mark stays the artist’s own.
Printed for you
Printed to order on cotton canvas or fine art paper, then framed if you chose a frame, in 1 to 3 business days.
On your wall
It arrives 5 to 12 business days later, tracked and free anywhere in the US. Framed pieces come ready to hang.
Questions
Is this the original painting?
No. The original hangs in a museum. What you receive is a fine art reproduction, remastered from the original and printed for you, with every mark where the artist left it.
Will the colour look flat?
This is where most reproductions disappoint, and it is where we spend the most time. Each work is graded side by side with the original: faithful to the artist’s colours, with the depth and warmth brought back, so it moves you on the wall the way it was meant to. Canvas reads a touch softer than a backlit screen, and every screen shows colour a little differently.
Will the edges be cropped?
Each size is a standard frame size, so we fit the painting by trimming a little from its edges. We never stretch or squash it, and we check every size by eye so no face, figure or signature is cut. On canvas the edges are mirror-wrapped, which keeps the whole picture on the front.
Which size is right for my wall?
Aim for about two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it. Over a sofa or a sideboard, one of the two largest sizes will hold the wall. The size guide lists every size in inches and centimetres, with the kind of wall each one suits.
How long does it take?
Your piece is printed in 1–3 business days, then spends 5–12 business days in transit, tracked all the way. Delivery is free anywhere in the US. We are unable to deliver to PO boxes.
What if it arrives damaged?
Send us a photograph and we will remake it and send it again. There is nothing to return.
Can I return it?
Yes, within 30 days of delivery. Our returns policy has the details.
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Printed to order
Graded against the original, then printed for you on cotton canvas or fine art paper in 1–3 business days.
The whole painting
Every mark is the artist’s own, and canvas edges are mirror-wrapped so the whole picture stays on the front.
Free US shipping
On every order, tracked, 5–12 business days in transit.
30-day returns
Returns and exchanges within 30 days of delivery.
