# Egret and Reeds

- By: Yang Ki-hun (Seuk-Eun) (Korean, 1843–1919?)
- Date: late 1800s
- Medium: hanging scroll; ink on paper
- Classification: Painting
- Dimensions: Overall: 196 x 61 cm (77 3/16 x 24 in.)
- Culture: Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
- Credit line: Gift from the Collection of George Gund III
- Museum: [Cleveland Museum of Art](https://clevelandart.org/art/2015.509)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2015.509/2015.509_web.jpg
- Who can see it: Little Ones profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

In this hanging scroll, an egret walks along the shores of a salt marsh where reeds abundantly grow. Native to Pyongyang, the artist Yang Ki-hun had no rival in bird-and-flower themes. The Taedong River estuary, one of Pyongyang’s beloved natural sites, may have been Yang’s favorite spot to observe and sketch various water birds.

Yang treated his subjects of flora and fauna with an observant naturalist’s view, yet his choice of subjects—an egret and reeds—is deeply rooted in traditional symbolic language: the egret stands for the scholarly reclusive life, while reeds indicate humility and modesty.