Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (Under the Wave off Kanagawa), from the series Fugaku sanjūrokkei (Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji)
Katsushika Hokusai, Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (Under the Wave off Kanagawa), from the series Fugaku sanjūrokkei (Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji), ca. 1831, color woodblock print on paper; ōban nishiki-e, The Mary Andrews Ladd Collection, public domain, 32.415
This work is not currently on view.
- Title
Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (Under the Wave off Kanagawa), from the series Fugaku sanjūrokkei (Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji)
- Related Titles
alternate: The Great Wave
original language: 神奈川沖浪裏
series (original language): 富嶽三十六景
series (translated): Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
series (transliterated): Fugaku sanjūrokkei
translated: Under the Wave off Kanagawa
transliterated: Kanagawa-oki nami-ura
- Artist
- Related People
publisher: Nishimura Yohachi (Japanese, active mid-19th century)
- Date
ca. 1831
- Period
Japan: Edo period (1615-1868)
- Medium
color woodblock print on paper; ōban nishiki-e
- Dimensions (H x W x D)
image/sheet: 10 in x 14 11/16 in
- Inscriptions & Markings
series title; title: 富嶽三十六景 / 神奈川沖浪裏, printed in blue ink within double rectangular cartouche, upper left Transliteration (Translation): Fugaku sanjūrokkei / Kanagawa-oki nami-ura (thirty-six views of Mount Fuji / under the wave off Kanagawa) Language: Japanese
signature: 北斎改為一筆, printed in blue ink, upper left Transliteration (Translation): Hokusai aratame Iitsu hitsu (brushed [by] Hokusai, now Iitsu) Language: Japanese
- Collection Area
Asian Art; Graphic Arts
- Category
Prints
Japanese Traditional Prints
- Object Type
relief print
- Culture
Japanese
- Credit Line
The Mary Andrews Ladd Collection
- Accession Number
32.415
- Copyright
public domain
- Terms
The merciless power of the ocean has never been more evocatively portrayed than in Hokusai’s iconic Great Wave. The claws of the cresting waves seek out their prey, three crews of men rushing to deliver fresh fish to market in Edo. No emotion can be detected on the faces of the sailors in the shadow of such terrifying forces, and we are left to imagine what will befall these hapless humans. At the heart of this swirling composition lies Mount Fuji, unfazed by the threat of the ocean’s wrath. The ocean is a dynamic counterpoint to the mountain’s still and silent form; a reminder of Fuji’s eternal presence throughout life’s fleeting adversities.
- Exhibitions
2022; 2023 Human Nature: 150 Years of Japanese Landscape Prints Portland Art Museum
