Katsushika Hokusai

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• published: 07 May 2012
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Katsushika Hokusai (October or November 1760 -- May 10, 1849)was a Japanese artist, ukiyo-e painter and printmaker of the Edo period. In his time, he was Japan's leading expert on Chinese painting.Born in Edo (now Tokyo), Hokusai is best-known as author of the woodblock print series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (富嶽三十六景, Fugaku Sanjūroku-kei?, c. 1831) which includes the internationally recognized print, The Great Wave off Kanagawa, created during the 1820s. Hokusai created the "Thirty-Six Views" both as a response to a domestic travel boom and as part of a personal obsession with Mount Fuji.It was this series, specifically The Great Wave print and Fuji in Clear Weather, that secured Hokusai's fame both within Japan and overseas. As historian Richard Lane concludes, "Indeed, if there is one work that made Hokusai's name, both in Japan and abroad, it must be this monumental print-series...".While Hokusai's work prior to this series is certainly important, it was not until this series that he gained broad recognition and left a lasting impact on the art world. It was also The Great Wave print that initially received, and continues to receive, acclaim and popularity in the Western world. Hokusai had a long career, but he produced most of his important work after age 60. His most popular work is the ukiyo-e series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, which was created between 1826 and 1833. It actually consists of 46 prints (10 of them added after initial publication).In addition, he is responsible for the 1834 One Hundred Views of Mount Fuji (富嶽百景, Fugaku Hyakkei?), a work which "is generally considered the masterpiece among his landscape picture books."His ukiyo-e transformed the art form from a style of portraiture focused on the courtesans and actors popular during the Edo Period in Japan's cities into a much broader style of art that focused on landscapes, plants, and animals. Both Hokusai's choice of nom d'artiste and frequent depiction of Mt. Fuji stem from his religious beliefs. The name Hokusai (北斎?) means "North Studio (room)," an abbreviation of Hokushinsai (北辰際?) or "North Star Studio." Hokusai was a member of the Nichiren sect of Buddhism, who see the North Star as associated with the deity Myōken (妙見菩薩?).Mount Fuji has traditionally been linked with eternal life. This belief can be traced to The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, where a goddess deposits the elixir of life on the peak. As Henry Smith expounds, "Thus from an early time, Mt. Fuji was seen as the source of the secret of immortality, a tradition that was at the heart of Hokusai's own obsession with the mountain." The largest of Hokusai's works is the 15-volume collection Hokusai Manga (北斎漫画?), a book crammed with nearly 4,000 sketches that was published in 1814.These sketches are often incorrectly considered the precedent to modern manga, as Hokusai's Manga is a collection of sketches (of animals, people, objects, etc.), different from the story-based comic-book style of modern manga. [from Wikipedia] Music by:Steve Roach www.steveroach.com