Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) was one of the most famous ukiyoe artists of the Edo period. The name Hokusai is known not only in Japan but also throughout the world.
At the age of 19, he apprenticed himself to the ukiyoe master Shunsho Katsukawa (1726-92), and made his debut the following year under the name Haruro Katsukawa, painting portrayals of actors. For the next 70 years, Hokusai devoted himself to painting.
During these 70 years, Hokusai changed his name as a painter, "Gagou" (雅号), a whopping 30 times. He used the name Haruro for about 15 years. At that time, he mainly painted mediocre actor pictures with no individuality, as well as illustrations for printed books.
The picture that Hokusai painted for the signboard of a picture book store (a kind of bookstore) was severely criticized by his brother Haruyoshi. This critical acclaim led Hokusai to study various styles of painting, including Rimpa school.
At the age of 36, he assumed the name of Sori Tawaraya (2nd generation) of the Edo Rimpa school. His style changed drastically, and he began to paint pictures of beautiful women and paintings of paintings by hand. Later, he began to use the pseudonym "Katsushika Hokusai," as he is widely known today.
At the age of 45, he laid out 120 tatami mat-sized sheets of cardboard in the garden of a temple and painted Daruma pictures in front of Ose.
Although he changed his pseudonym from time to time, Hokusai never stopped painting, and when he turned 70, he published his masterpiece series, "Fugaku Sanjurokkei (Thirty-six views of Mt. Fuji).
The "Fugaku Sanjurokkei" series was created between 1831 and 1834. Fuji, a series of 36 famous landscape paintings. Due to popular demand, 10 more were added to the series, bringing the total to 46 paintings.
Commonly known as "Red Fuji," this work is one of the best known in the world. Fuji in red on a clear late-summer early morning with a southerly breeze.
Except for the rinkaku line, the indigo color is Prussian blue (Vero indigo), a chemically synthesized product imported from the West. Vero indigo is a scientific dye that produces more vivid colors than conventional vegetable dyes. Hokusai actively used these cutting-edge painting materials of the time.
This work, as famous as "Red Fuji," is a masterpiece known worldwide for its dynamic depiction of a large wave. In this masterpiece, an oshi-sokuri-bune, a boat carrying fresh fish to Edo (present-day Tokyo), is bobbing in the rough sea with waves splashing in the water.
Fuji in the center of the picture, whose presence can be felt even in the distant background, surprised artists around the world with Hokusai's excellent sense of composition and new ways of expression.
Hokusai said the following;
At the age of 73, I was able to depict some of the shapes and forms of various living creatures, plants and trees. I hope that the gods of longevity will bless me with a life of my own when I reach the age of 100. I hope that the god of longevity will see that these words of mine are not mere idle talk.
I am not sure whether these words are humble or high-minded, but they convey Hokusai's extraordinary enthusiasm for his paintings.
Known as a first-rate painter, Hokusai was also famous as an eccentric. He moved frequently and changed lodgings more than 90 times in his life. It is said that he sometimes moved three times in one day.
His attitude toward life was also really disordered. He bought or received food from others and did not cook by himself. He did not have any dishes in his house, did not transfer food to dishes, ate with the bamboo wrappings or in the box, and left the garbage as it was. However, he did not drink alcohol and did not smoke.
He was also indifferent to money, and did not save money even when he was paid a high fee for his work. He never bowed when he met people, and he was always in a casual manner. A visitor to Hokusai's house at the time said, "He sat at his desk in dirty clothes, with packages of food scattered nearby. His daughter was also sitting among the garbage and painting.
Thus, Hokusai was a totally free-spirited man, but he also left behind many episodes because of this. He was sometimes angered by requests from the lord of the Tsugaru domain and popular Kabuki actors for his work. On the other hand, there is also a story about his genius. One time, Hokusai was summoned by a former accountant to draw an ordinary, precise picture at first, but then he gave a twisted piece of half-sheet of paper to the children present, dipped it in ink, and let it drip onto the paper. He added his brush to the ink that was randomly on the paper and made it into a yokai painting, astonishing those who were watching. When Ienari Tokugawa, the 11th Shogun, called on him, he had a chicken with its soles covered in red run along the river he had painted, and he made its footprints look like autumn leaves, saying, "It is in the Tatsuta River.
Hokusai painted the whole world and produced more than 30,000 works during his lifetime. Known for his mastery of description, rapid brushwork, and eccentricities, Hokusai could not outlive his life. He became ill and died in a tenement house on the grounds of Henshoin Temple (now Asakusa 6-chome) in Asakusa's Seiten-cho district. He left behind the thought that if he lived another 10 years, or even 5 years longer, he could become a real painter... and departed for the other world.
