Facilitating dialogue to promote open and multi-faceted discussion and awareness

In the romantic imagination, Hokusai is a man who changed his name more than 30 times, his address 90, and only regarded works produced during the last 20 years of his life to be worth counting. His most popular print, The Great Wave, is nearly universally recognized. Considering the current crisis in Japan, perhaps it’s only fitting that we take a look at this remarkable piece.

No other work is as widely celebrated as The Great Wave. It has been used in all forms of media, from book covers and comics to album cover-art and, not surprisingly, sushi bar decor. This application into global pop-culture has given Hokusai’s print iconic status.

Impressions of the work vary from Japanese audiences to Western. In 19th-century Japan, the eye was trained to read images right to left, much like text which gave the viewer of coming face-first into the wave– a startling effect. In the West, however, the wave is merely seen as falling left to right. A continued look at the image reveals all of the consistent characteristics that defined Hokusai’s style: fine lines, naturally appropriate and contrasting coloring, and dramatic details amidst simplicity.

Hokusai was influential in drawing the focus of Japanese art away from portrails of actors and courtesans to that of landscapes, plants, and animals. This was in large part thanks to his “One Hundred Views of Mt. Fuji,” a work which was born of his deep-rooted Buddhist beliefs.

He is credited with influencing the Art Nouveau movement in 19th-Century Europe, a part of the much larger Impressionist movement endowed with styles similar to Hokusai’s, which can be seen in the works of Monet and Renoir. This is only fitting, as his works were the first to reach Europe from Japan during the time. To this day, he has continued to inspire artists around the globe with his unique compositions and technique.

With that said, Japan (and Hokusai, of course!), we tip our hats in thanks, godspeed, and a prayer.

I, of course, am not an art critic/historian.