Who painted 狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum?

狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum was painted by Kano Shōei in mid- to late 16th century.

Where can I see 狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum?

狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is 狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum?

狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum is associated with Kanō school.

Artwork

狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum

Kano Shōei , 1550

狩野松栄筆梅鵯図|Brown-Eared Bulbul (Hiyodori) on a Branch of Plum is an ink painting by the Kanō school artist Kano Shōei. It dates from 1550 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The bird, often associated with vigilance and refinement in classical poetry, amplifies the allegory of endurance through adversity.

The painting depicts a brown-eared bulbul perched on a plum branch in full bloom, a motif rooted in East Asian literati tradition. The plum blossom, flowering amidst winter’s chill, symbolizes resilience, renewal, and the fleeting beauty of life, a theme resonant in Chinese and Japanese art since the Song dynasty. The bird, often associated with vigilance and refinement in classical poetry, amplifies the allegory of endurance through adversity.

Together, plum and bulbul form a classical pairing evoking the arrival of spring and the cyclical promise of nature’s rebirth, a subject that Kano Shōei adapts within the decorative yet expressive idiom of the Kanō school.

Technique & Style

The work is executed as a hanging scroll using ink and polychrome pigments on paper support, a format typical of Japanese painting of the Muromachi period. The composition, dated to 1550, portrays a brown‑eared bulbul perched on a plum branch amidst a flower and tree motif, reflecting the bird‑and‑flower genre within the Kanō school's repertoire. The scroll’s vertical orientation and delicate brushwork demonstrate careful handling to preserve the fragile paper surface.

As part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, the piece was produced in Japan and remains classified as a painting, underscoring its historical and stylistic significance.

Overview

Brown-Eared Bulbul on a Branch of Plum, created around 1550 by Kano Shōei, is a hanging scroll rendered in ink and color on paper. This painting captures a solitary hiyodori, a common Japanese bird, resting amidst the delicate blossoms of a plum tree. The artwork exemplifies the artist's keen observation of the natural world, presenting a quiet, intimate scene.