Sa-Rah Ahyoga Hwang: Artworks for Kim Hyo-Yeon, of Girls' Generation

My daughter Sa-Rah is thirteen and loves the Korean pop band Girls' Generation (소녀시대; 少女時代) and was selected by the fan club to compose a birthday letter for band member Kim Hyo-Yeon (김효연). Sa-Rah went beyond her duty and also designed an artful envelope, both sides.

Below is the obverse of the envelope, before and after coloring:






















Of these first two images, Sa-Rah says:

I chose the image of a harlequin because this is a birthday letter, and clowns are often associated with birthdays. Also, clowns are very colorful, so I thought it would look bright and joyful to have a harlequin on the envelope. The Korean writing on the apple says, "Fresh Apple Princess," which is one of Hyo-Yeon's nicknames. It sounds better in Korean than English.

Below is the reverse of the envelope, before and after coloring:






















Of these second two images, Sa-Rah says:

The flower is a star-flower, which has a star as the blossom and is shining more brightly than anything else. The letters "A-HY" stand for "Aster-Hyo-Yeon" because "aster" means "star." I chose this image as a wish that Hyo-Yeon become a star of the world.

Sa-Rah has already sent the birthday missive to Kim Hyo-Yeon, though there's no guarantee that it will reach her since it has to first be vetted by the the organizer of the fan club . . . and probably by the company, SM Entertainment, which 'owns' Girls' Generation.

Oh, to be a young teenager again . . .

UPDATE: Sa-Rah's birthday greeting for Kim Hyo-Yeon must have made the grade, for it appears on the website Girls' Generation Naver Fan Cafe CISTUS as about the 31st image below (just scroll down close to the bottom).