We like a seabird study best when it comes with a little abrasion. This one is an old engraved plate, page number still in the corner and the caption still running along the bottom, so it brings age into a room rather than just a picture of a bird. Hung up, it makes a wall feel settled and a bit collected. The warm off-white background does most of the work, so it suits a hallway, a study or a bedroom wall that needs quiet rather than colour. Pair it with dark wood, aged leather, linen and pewter or stoneware. Keep loud modern graphics and bright colour-block pieces away from it; they flatten the fine linework. As a canvas it loses the paper sheen and reads a little softer and older.