Butcher Birds and a Backyard Brew

The puddle from the aircon is awash with frogs and snails, and the morning croaking chorus is almost deafening. The back verandah of our old Queenslander awaits its daily visitation from the two cheeky butcherbirds who have decided that our globe-trotting ginger tom obviously has more bark than bite, which makes the food and water bowl fair game. In fact, they sing their arrival with their little chests puffed wide, begging an audience. And I generally oblige.

There is nothing shy about the Australian wildlife. Amidst olive branches or gum leaves, they appear quite at home. The echo of Italian patinas through the Australian urban landscape affects them not at all. After all, who is to say that it doesn't just feel like another slice of normality?

Butcher Birds and a Backyard Brew is part of the A Perpetual Brew Series and considers how people carry traditions and visual languages with them when they make a home in another country. Australian butcherbirds, native foliage and handmade pottery sit among antique Italian coffee cups, olives, vintage pewter and Italian architecture. Photographed separately and brought together through composition, these elements consider how traditions travel, adapt and gradually become part of a new place, helping to shape the culture that grows there.

Open Edition

Archival pigment print on smooth cotton rag.

Available in:

A4 — 210 × 297 mm
A3 — 297 × 420 mm

Small Works are supplied unframed, allowing you to choose a presentation that suits your own interior.

Each artwork is printed to order by our professional fine-art printing partners in Australia or New Zealand.

Small Works are printed to order and carefully packaged for safe delivery.

Please allow approximately 7–10 business days for printing and preparation before dispatch. Delivery times vary depending on destination.

Complimentary shipping is included in the artwork price.

Small Works can be shipped worldwide.

Tracking details will be provided once your artwork has been dispatched.

Your Small Work is printed on archival cotton rag and should be handled with care.

We recommend having your artwork professionally framed using archival materials and UV-protective glazing.

Once framed, avoid prolonged exposure to direct sunlight, excessive heat, moisture and high humidity.

Until framed, keep the print in its protective packaging and avoid touching the printed surface.