Luminous . . . Nuanced and passionate, [Davidson’s] book achieves what many travel writers can only aspire to: the sense of being both inside and outside of a culture at the same time.” — Booklist

Gray, Basil, 'The Work of Hokusai-Woodcuts, Illustrated Books, Drawings and Paintings: A Catalogue of an Exhibition held on the Occasion of the Centenary of his Death', British Museum, London, 1948, no. 62. Katsushika Hokusai, South Wind, Clear Sky (Gaifū kaisei), also known as Red Fuji, from Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, 1830-1832, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, USA.

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Not only does this symbolise Japan as a whole, but it is representative of his strong Buddhist beliefs. The fact that the three characters displayed within the painting seem to be travelling toward the base of the mountain could be interpreted as his own desire to become closer to his own sense of spirituality. While not as famous as his other works, Barrier Town on the Sumida River is certainly representative of the sheer talent of this prolific painter. The composition is interesting in that the image appears to be cropped and you wouldn’t be alone in believing the image had been altered on your screen but it hasn’t this is how it was painting. It is believed the thought behind this is to give the impression of you being part of the scene, scrambling among the bustling crowds as they attempt to cross the bridge. The chaotic scene makes the bridge itself barely viable, you can only make it out if you look very closely at the bottom of the piece and note the finial attachment on the gate post.

The series was produced from c. 1830 to 1832, when Hokusai was in his seventies and at the height of his career, and published by Nishimura Yohachi. [1] [2] Among the prints are three of Hokusai's most famous: The Great Wave off Kanagawa, Fine Wind, Clear Morning, and Thunderstorm Beneath the Summit. [1] The lesser-known Kajikazawa in Kai Province is also considered one of the series' best works. [3] The Thirty-six Views has been described as the artist's "indisputable colour-print masterpiece". [2] History [ edit ] The origin of the name Fuji is unclear. An early folk etymology claims that Fuji came from (不二, not + two), meaning without equal or nonpareil. Another claims that it came from (不尽, not + exhaust), meaning neverending. This series was being made as from 1830 to 1832 and it was really huge at this time Hokusai was in his seventies. Each specific image included drawing on a paper and using the image to guide a carving on wood. The wood is then covered with ink and applied on a paper to recreate the image.He used a lot of colours which made his art stand out seeming so different.He had created 36 series of the views mountain Fuji but because the art became so popular he added ten more. An idyllic scene, with five figures - men, women and children - standing upon a veranda outside a temple.Before them lies a lake or marsh, spreading out to meet the horizon in the distance. The image is composed so that most of the nine figures are seen from the rear, as though the viewer is standing behind them, also observing the view. Mt Fuji, a recurring theme in Hokusai's work, can be seen in the distance; also identifiable to those familiar with Japanese geography are the lumber yards of Fukagawa. Hokusai's skill at portraying human subjects is as adept at his mastery of the natural world: the nine figures each have their own character, from the one on the left eagerly pointing in the direction of Mt Fuji, to the one towards the right mobbing sweat from his forehead. Hokusai's "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" is justly celebrated as one of the world's greatest series of images of various conditions and vantage points of a particular place, in this case, the mountain synonymous with Japan. Juxtaposed here with the clear brilliant calm of "South Wind, Clear Sky" (the "Red Fuji"), the Storm Below Fuji reveals the expressive range and power of Hokusai's vision. Forky across the inky base, a bolt of white lightning dramatizes the sudden change from a cloud filled summer sky to the murky violence that obscures all below Fuji's magnificent cone.The Prints of Japan. Frank A. Turk, October House Inc, 1966, Lib Congress catalog Card no. 66-25524

Although Ukiyo-e can depict anything from contemporary city life to classical literature, it was landscapes like this that earned Hokusai his fame. The saturated colors and stylized forms in such prints helped inspire the Impressionist and Post-impressionist movements decades later. Fine Wind, Clear Morning Now located across two of Tokyo’s busiest districts, Onden once resided behind the Zenko-ji Temple in the Aoyama district. It was then a small farming village littered with many waterwheels, powered by the great Shibuya river.It is one of these watermills that is depicted by the distinguished Japanese artist, Katsushika Hokusai, in his ‘Watermill at Onden’. The image is one of a series of 36, which Hokusai started in 1830 at the age of 70 Julia White, 'et al.', 'Hokusai and Hiroshige: Great Japanese Prints from the James A. Michener Collection, Honolulu Academy of Arts', Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 1998 (commentaries by Yoko Woodson), no. 6.Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji is a series by the very talented Katsushika Hokusai. The art is also loved as much as people love the real mountain Fuji. His work is so valuable that it is hard to see the original art.