Bird on a Branch

Inscribed by Daiko Shōkaku Japanese

before 1535

Not on view

This work features dry and spontaneous brushwork that captures the moment a small bird (a titmouse) has alighted on a wizened branch. The brusque calligraphy by Daitokuji temple prelate Daiko Shōkaku cites a verse by the well-known Zen monk-poet Son’an (Kisei Reigen, 1402–1488). The poem reads:

In the forest, when evening comes
birds retire and nest together.
Coupled birds remain in flight,
their joined wings letting them soar,
not looking for a place to spend the night.
—Translation after Miyeko Murase

Artwork Details

雲溪永怡筆太虛祥廓賛枝に小禽図
Title: Bird on a Branch
Artist: Unkei Eii (Japanese, active first half of the 16th century)
Artist: Inscribed by Daiko Shōkaku (Japanese, died 1535)
Period: Muromachi period (1392–1573)
Date: before 1535
Culture: Japan
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink on paper
Dimensions: Image: 9 5/16 × 10 13/16 in. (23.7 × 27.5 cm)
Overall with mounting: 45 7/16 × 16 1/8 in. (115.4 × 41 cm)
Overall with knobs: 45 7/16 × 17 15/16 in. (115.4 × 45.5 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015
Object Number: 2015.300.59
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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