THE PLUM BLOSSOM - A SYMBOL OF SPRING

Oil on Canvas 24" x 18"

Original photograph

Spring air -
woven moon
and plum scent.

- Matsuo Basho (Japanese Poet)

This portrait is of a Japanese bride, wearing a simple, floral kimono and a delicate flower-motif hair ornament, kanzashi, made of silk plum blossoms. The plum blossom holds a special place in Japanese traditions: it represents spring, a time of new beginnings, and is associated with beauty, purity, hope and the transitoriness of life.