Katie Lovegren

Art 395/396 sec 03

Amanda Klauck

Katsushika Hokusai (Born 1760- May 10, 1849)

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa 1823 retrieved from https://www.katsushikahokusai.org/

Fugi in Clear Weather retrieved from https://www.katsushikahokusai.org/

Katusushika Hokusai was a leading expert on Chinese painting, as a Japanese artist,
ukiyo-e painter and printmaker of the Edo period. He was best known for his wood block print
series called ‘Thirty-six Views’ of Mount Fugi. This series contains his famous “The Great Wave
Off Kanagawa” 1823 in which he became famous for in both Japan and in other countries
overseas. It was this series that brought about “a broad recognition and lasting impact on the
art world” (2017).
He was born to a family of artists in Edo which is now Tokyo, Japan. The exact date is
unclear; however, it is believed to be described and later translated to October 23, 1760
(killion). He first started painting at a very young age (age 6 according to Tom Killion) and then
became a wood carver in his teens. He was accepted into the studio of Katsukawa Shunsho (a
fellow artist who did work in the ukiyo-e style) at the age of 18. Here he studied and created art
that depicted domestic travel, booming merchant class, kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers. He
also began experimenting with other styles of art to include Western styles. When he was
expelled from the Katsukaawa School he began to develop his own signature technique. (2021).
As he changed techniques, he often changed his name and is known to have as many as 30
pseudonyms exceeding any other major Japanese artist. This was common practice of Japanese
artists. His artistic production and style are often identified by the frequent changes and are
used to break up his life into periods (Killion). He was married twice and fathered two sons and
three daughters. Of the three daughters, one went on to also become an artist. (Killion).
The two creations “The Great Wave” and “Fugi in Clear Weather” included in the thirty-
six views series are what gained Hokusai international fame. (2021). His artistry with the
woodblock print series had impacted many Western artists, such as Edouard Manet, Claude
Monet, and Vincent can Gogh. (2021) Hokusai contributes his development of his artistic style
to the embarrassment suffered at the expulsion of the Katsukawa school by chief disciple of
Shunsho as he was studying at a rival school called Kano school. (Killion). At this time, he
moved away from images of courtesans and actors and instead focused on landscapes and
images of daily life of Japanesse people. (Killion) Fireworks at Ryogoku Bridge was created
during this time. (Killion)

During a Tokyo festival he created a portrait of Druma, a Buddhist priest, which was
described as 600 feeet long using a broom and buckets of ink. This added to his fame. He also
did work as providing illustrations to books with the popular novelist, Takizawa Bakin. He paid
close attention to his illustrations and often made criticisms if the work did not come out as he
intended it. (Killion). The publisher agreed to make changes to the publications based on his
critiques. Prints and originals still survive from 1833-1836. (Killion)
In 1811, he created art manuals. 12 volumes of manga published before 1820 and 3
more published after his death depict often with humorous overtones in drawings of animals,
religious figures, and everyday people of that time period. These were very popular. (Killion) As
the style continues to this day, it is debated that Hokusai is the father of manga. (2020).
In 1839 his studio was destroyed by a fire and much of his artwork with it. By this time,
he was no longer in the spotlight as younger artists began to emerge and become popular.
(Killion) He continued to produce art and stived to better his technique and was known to have
said on his death bed that he wished he had another 10 years or even 5 so that he could
become a ‘real painter’. (Killion) He died May 10, 1849 and was buried in Tokyo. (Killion)

Citations
Hokusai. (2021). Retrieved April 10, 2021, from http://www.artnet.com/artists/katsushika-
hokusai/biography#:~:text=Katsushika%20Hokusai%20(Japanese%2C%201760%E2%80%9
3,wood%2Dcarver%20as%20a%20teenager.

Hokusai: The father of MANGA? - British Museum Blog. (2020, November 27). Retrieved April
10, 2021, from https://blog.britishmuseum.org/hokusai-the-father-of-manga/
Katsushika Hokusai. (2017). Retrieved April 10, 2021, from https://www.katsushikahokusai.org/
Killion, T. (n.d.). JOURNEY TO HOKUSAI. Retrieved April 10, 2021, from
https://www.journeytohokusai.com/new-page