Hokusai: Beyond the Great Wave

Abstract

• The accompanying title to the major British Museum exhibition Hokusai: beyond the Great Wave. Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) is widely regarded as one of Japan’s most famous and influential artists. This publication casts fresh light on the sublime paintings and prints Hokusai created in the last thirty years of his life, up to his death at the age of ninety. Hokusai’s personal beliefs are expressed through his major brush paintings, drawings, woodblock prints and illustrated books. This title gives due attention to the contribution of Hokusai’s daughter Eijo (Ōi), also an accomplished artist. The late subjects and styles of Hokusai were based on a mastery of eclectic Japanese, Chinese and European techniques, and an encyclopaedic knowledge of nature, myth and history. Hokusai: beyond the Great Wave explores the finest collections of his work in Japan and around the world with a uniquely valuable overview of the artist’s career.