A really fun thing about painting cardinals, especially the males, is discovering all the shades of red on him!  From a warm, almost tangerine to Crayola red to a cool, dark purplish, he's got it all!

We see them all year in our garden, but fewer this summer since they've discovered that the invasive Spotted Lantern Flies are yummy and nutritious, and our next door neighbor's enormous willow tree is the SLF's favorite spot.

But they always make time to fly over to feast on sunflowers, sunchoke flowers and in the winter, their favorites that we put out for them.  

We enjoy watching the couples together, too.

This guy is featured in my little shop here for immediate shipping purchase and comes with a complimentary tabletop easel.