Loates MasterEdition
1992
Master lithographer M. Bernard Loates created these very limited edition prints
of 10 Audubon images in 1992. Working from original Havell/Audubon engravings, Loates
and his crew of printing and colorist master craftsmen began by stripping the images
back to the original black line engravings. The colorists hand-mixed German "Light
Fast" inks to match the actual live plumage of the birds depicted. Colors were added
one at a time using hand-cut overlays. Each image was passed up to 60 times through
the single-color press. The extremely fine 400 line screens produce a photograph-like
continuous tone image even under magnification. Paper is 19½ by 27 inches,
archival, 100% rag, acid-free stock custom made and specially watermarked by Manadnock
Mills, New Hampshire. Only 130 sets of signed and numbered proofs were released
to the US market; the remaining 620 sets were contracted to a Canadian dealer to
be distributed only in that market. The flats and plates were destroyed after production.
The 10 plates chosen for this project were:
| Plate Number | Image Name |
| 17 | Mourning Dove |
| 41 | Ruffed Grouse |
| 47 | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
| 76 | Bobwhite & Red Shouldered Hawk |
| 177 | White Crowned Pigeon |
| 211 | Great Blue Heron |
| 221 | Mallard Ducks |
| 242 | Snowy Egret |
| 411 | Whistling Swan |
| 431 | American Flamingo |