Peonies

A fluffy bud is about to bloom, while another is in bloom. The peony’s spectacular look is true to its second name – “Fuki-so” (noble and wealthy flower). In the book titled “The Nature of Flower and Bird Painting”, which Shiho wrote in 1945, he said “Little birds can make the evil in human minds pure, noble, and beautiful.” He further stated “…I want to express little birds that are significant and miraculous in such ability.” Shiho could have expressed this idea by only painting the flowers of the peony – the king of flowers. He instead chose to add the small birds to lend purity to the illustration.