Plum Blossoms and Sparrows Under the Moon, Painting and Poem by So Kang. The brief and beautiful poem reads: The fluid movement of the plum blossom's fragrance breaks the silence. This feeling is vividly captured on this bright and beautiful painting by So Kang in 1992. Because plum blossoms bloom early, when winter is not quite finished, they are a symbol of courage. Two sparrows in a plum tree symbolize marital bliss. The Sino-Korean word for sparrows is 'chak', which also means 'joy'. Two sparrows are 'chak chak', which is read as 'joy and happiness'. The moon adds complex symbolism to the painting, if you want to go deeper into it. The phrase 'mi-su-sang-nak' means 'As you are growing old, keep having a good time', because 'mi-su' means 'Live a long life till your eyebrows turn white', and 'sang-nak' means 'May you also have a happy time'. The route to deriving this phrase, 'mi-su-sang-nak' from 'moon, plum tree and sparrows' is an old and complicated one. For those of you interested in an etymology that developed over centuries: The word for plum blossom 'mae' sounds like 'mi'; the word for plum branch 'cho' sounds like 'su' in Sino-Korean; the moon over the branch gives the word 'sang' which means 'over' but can also mean 'too' or 'also'; and the yin principle for moon is 'um' which is read here as 'umnak' which means music or a good time enjoyed with lively music, and the 'nak' part of this word means 'joy'. Ink and colors on paper. Frame: 25.25 x 20 inches, 64 x 51 cm; Painting: 16 x 12.5 inches, 40.5 x 32 cm.
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