Lot #3: Robert Bateman SIGNED Limited Edition Print "Bright Day – Atlantic Puffins"

Hand-signed, and numbered limited-edition offset lithograph print titled "Bright Day – Atlantic Puffins" by the world's premier wildlife artist, Robert Bateman. This masterwork captures a group of Atlantic puffins gathered on a steep coastal cliff along the rugged East Coast. True to Bateman's signature style, the composition behaves like a visual symphony. It draws the eye dynamically across the texturized rock and wild ocean grasses, contrasting the detailed plumage of the puffins against the softly blurred, deep blue swells of the North Atlantic. The piece comes beautifully housed in a premium silver-leaf wooden profile frame featuring an oversized neutral matte that perfectly coordinates with the artwork and emphasizes the crispness of the printing inks. • Artist: Robert McLellan Bateman (RCA, OC) • Title: Bright Day – Atlantic Puffins • Medium: Limited Edition Offset Lithograph on Acid-Free Archive Stock • Signature: Hand-signed in pencil by the artist (lower right); hand-numbered (lower left) • Framed Dimensions: 25.25" Height x 30.5" Width Collector’s Notes & Historical Context While thousands of secondary-market Bateman prints are available online, "Bright Day – Atlantic Puffins" stands significantly above the standard inventory for several key reasons: • A Narrative of Environmental Urgency: Bateman painted the original composition following a 24-hour stay directly within a wild puffin colony. He noted that while the scene looks cheerful, the expressions of the puffins are profoundly "tragic-comic". He intended the artwork to highlight their quiet, exhausting battle for survival against encroaching herring gulls—a population boom caused directly by modern commercial fishing waste. It is a quintessential example of Bateman using fine art as a vehicle for global conservation advocacy. • The "British Sailor" Imagery: Bateman explicitly noted that his inspiration for the palette came from the sea. He famously remarked that the puffins reminded him of old-time British sailors, and the vivid, geometric blocks of orange and yellow on their bills mirrored the nautical flags and celebratory bunting strung across historic sailing ships. • Exclusivity Over Massive Modern Runs: Many common Bateman images seen on the market are unlimited promotional posters, book plates, or massive modern commercial reproductions. This particular print belongs to the traditional, highly restricted primary print run (historically capped at an edition size of 950 prints worldwide). It holds a much stricter scarcity profile than standard open editions. • Premium Presentation Value: Framing costs for a piece of this size can easily exceed the baseline secondary market value of an unframed print. This lot includes an elegant, high-end gallery frame that is completely ready to hang, making it an excellent investment for residential spaces, coastal cottages, or corporate boardrooms. Pickup category timeslot {A}