Harvard Art Museums > 1980.94: Bird on a Blossoming Rose Branch Eyeing a Bee Paintings Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Bird on a Blossoming Rose Branch Eyeing a Bee (Kim Sik [Gim Sik]) , 1980.94,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Dec 22, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/201852. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1980.94 People Kim Sik [Gim Sik], Korean (active mid 17th century) Title Bird on a Blossoming Rose Branch Eyeing a Bee Classification Paintings Work Type painting, album leaf Date mid 17th century Places Creation Place: East Asia, Korea Period Chosŏn dynasty, 1392-1910 Culture Korean Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/201852 Physical Descriptions Medium Album leaf; ink on medium gray paper flecked with gold Dimensions painting proper: H. 26.2 x W. 21.2 cm (10 5/16 x 8 3/8 in.) Provenance Recorded Ownership History Nelson Goodman (1906-1998), Newton, MA (by 1980), gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1980. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Nelson Goodman Accession Year 1980 Object Number 1980.94 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description A title slip mounted under the silk-covered mat attributes this painting to Kim Sik, a statement that accords with the impressed seals. Skilled at landscape depictions but best known for his representations of oxen, Kim Sik came from a prominent family of painters and was the grandnephew of Kim Che (active 1540), one of sixteenth-century Korea's most famous painters of birds and flowers. The genre of bird-and-flower painting arose in China during the Northern Song period (960-1127) and remained popular through succeeding dynasties; it spread to Korea early in the Chosŏn (1392-1911) dynasty and to Japan in the Muromachi period (1392-1568). Chinese painters tended to depict birds in color, while Korean and Japanese artists preferred to render them in monochrome ink. The hard-edged washes used to portray the birds and rose leaves, in this leaf attests to Kim Sik's mastery of brush and ink. Native to China, roses appear only occasionally in Chinese paintings; by contrast, they occur with some frequency in Korean and Japanese works. Gold-flecked paper enjoyed a measure of popularity among Chinese literati artists of the late Ming (1368-1644) and early Qing (1644-1911) periods; it sparked interest among Korean painters of the mid-Chosŏn period and claimed widespread popularity by the nineteenth century. Although they had employed a variety of decorated papers at least since Heian times (794-1185), Japanese artists seldom used this type of lightly flecked paper. Only occasionally used by Chinese painters, tinted papers enjoyed a vogue in Korea throughout the Chosŏn dynasty. Such colored papers seldom were dyed during manufacture; rather, they were tinted with ink washes--generally pale gray or blue--after manufacture but before painting. Exhibition History The Arts of Korea, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 07/11/1992 - 01/31/1993 Plum, Orchid, Chrysanthemum, and Bamboo: Botanical Motifs and Symbols in East Asian Painting, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 07/06/2002 - 01/05/2003 Verification Level This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
