Jays on Berry Tree 

Ohara Koson's "Jays on Berry Tree" presents a slice of the natural world through the lens of Japanese printmaking. The jays, poised amidst the berries, immediately draw us into a symbolic realm. Birds, across cultures, often represent the soul, freedom, or a connection to the divine, while berries can signify nourishment, abundance, or even temptation. Consider how these motifs echo through history. Birds appear in ancient Egyptian art as representations of souls, and berries feature prominently in classical myths, from the grapes of Dionysus to the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Koson's work is a study of contrast between stillness and vitality, capturing the transient beauty of life. The berries will soon be gone, the birds will soon fly away. The arrangement evokes a sense of melancholic beauty, speaking to our subconscious awareness of life’s fleeting nature. The jays, rendered with meticulous detail, seem to embody both watchfulness and vulnerability. Such is the enduring power of symbols: they resonate across time, continually evolving yet forever tethered to our collective human experience.