Canvas - Hen and Chicks, Byeon Sang-byeok

Framed Canvas - Hen and Chicks, Byeon Sang-byeok

Spice up your bare walls with this eye-catching framed canvas! This high-quality, pinewood-framed canvas print—Hen and Chicks by Byeon Sang-byeok—comes with rubber bumpers on the back corners and a wall mount for effortless hanging. In addition, the frame gives the canvas a cool floating effect!

• Frame: Pine
• Frame thickness: 3.18 cm (1.25″)
• Canvas fabric weight: 344 g/m² +/- 25g/m² (10.15 +/- 0.74 oz/yd²)
• Open back
• Rubber bumpers on the back corners
• Hanging hardware attached
• Blank sourced from the USA

Disclaimers:
- Framed canvases with brown and black frames have a black interior around the canvas, while canvases with white frames have a white interior around the canvas.
- This product is not intended for sanding or cutting—doing so creates airborne dust that may cause lung irritation.

Unframed Canvas

Looking for something to add flair to your office or home? Your search ends here! This canvas print—Hen and Chicks, Byeon Sang-byeok—with its vibrant, fade-resistant colors is sure to catch the eye.

• 3.18 cm (1.25″) thick poly-cotton blend canvas fabric
• Canvas fabric weight: 344 g/m² +/- 25 g/m² (10.15 +/- 0.74 oz./yd.²)
• Fade-resistant
• Hand-stretched over a solid wood stretcher frame
• Mounting brackets included
• Blank sourced from the USA, Canada, Europe, the United Kingdom, or Australia

Hen and Chicks, Byeon Sang-byeok

A liveliness that seems almost touchable as you approach

“Hen and Chicks” is a work by Byeon Sang-byeok (변상벽), a court painter from the late Joseon Dynasty—the 18th century—whose dates of birth and death are unknown. Byeon was known for painting cats and chickens so masterfully that he earned the nicknames “Byeon Cat” (변고양이) and “Byeon Chicken” (변계). True to his reputation, the hen and chicks in this painting appear lifelike, as though they were alive. This work is one of the most detailed and precise depictions of the bird-and-flower genre from the late Joseon period.

“Hen and Chicks,” Byeon Sang-byeok, 18th century, Joseon Dynasty, colors on silk, 101 × 50 cm

It seems as though you could hear the sounds: the peeping of the small, busy chicks, the tapping of their beaks on the feed bowl, and, occasionally, the rustling of the mother hen’s wings. It is a scene one might see on a warm spring day while sitting in a traditional Korean house and opening the windows. A hen and 14 yellow-and-black chicks are busy pecking at food in a soft, greenish yard. The mother hen carries a worm in her beak that she seems to be about to give to her chicks, and she gazes at them warmly yet wisely.

The hen is the true protagonist of the painting: her sharp eyes, well-fed and proud body, and neatly arranged, glossy feathers convey the image of a wise and dependable mother. Raising 14 chicks requires this majestic presence. The hen’s feathers were carefully drawn one by one, with the shading becoming darker from the tips toward the base, giving her a healthy and glossy appearance. Her long tail feathers were sketched with lively brushstrokes, creating a balance between detail and expressiveness.

The chicks are depicted so precisely that you could almost reach out and grab them. Their fluffy, soft down is rendered so convincingly that they seem alive. Byeon Sang-byeok masterfully painted not only their shapes and feathers but also captured the individual poses and behaviors of the chicks: one hides behind its mother, one sits comfortably between her legs, some compete for food, while others gather around their mother or peck at food on their own. This variety brings a smile to the viewer’s face.

The background features rocks, butterflies, bees, and flowers. While the butterflies and flowers are depicted realistically, the rocks were rendered with a few bold brushstrokes. The painting combines the detailed depiction of the hen and chicks with a simpler background, creating a warm spring atmosphere.