The painting “Ssirum” (Korean wrestling) is a typical masterpiece of Kim Hong Do, a realistic genre painter of Korea in the late period of the 18^th century.

   In the middle of it, two wrestlers have a match and speculators sit around. On the left of it, a taffy seller carries a wooden tray.

   The match reaches the climax when one wrestler attempts to tackle the opponent. He concentrates all his strength to lift and push down the opponent to the ground, while the lifted opponent strains not to fall down, all of which resembles a real game.

   The spectaculars make different gestures; one laughs a hearty laugh leaning back, another watches the match intensely holding his breath, the other hides his face behind a folding fan and looks over it anxiously.

   What is distinctive is that the taffy seller who has no interest in the competition only attends to his business with his back to the match. And also the hats and shoes taken off on the ground relieve the monotony of the picture and stress well the atmosphere of the wrestling ground.

   The painting “Ssirum” depicting the traditional physical game of the Korean people is an excellent work of genre painting which is concise as in a sketch and conveys humor excitement.