A Chaffinch at its Nest (illustrated); and A Greenfinch at its Nest

Hughes was primarily a still-life painter, having studied under George Lance (1802-1864) and William Henry Hunt, O.W.S. (1790-1864). He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1866 until the end of his life. One of his major commissions was a series of large oil paintings of birds for Lord Calthorpe's house in Grosvenor Square, London.