Hokusai

by Sandra Forty

Katsushika Hokusai is the most famous of a sequence of names used by a versatile and long-lived Japanese artist who worked in many genres and schools, evolving a unique style that made him known then as well as now as a true master. He was an unusual and restless man who slipped boundaries and made fresh connections, yet never sought great wealth or position. Hokusai produced over 30,000 different designs, prints, illustrations, paintings, and sketches. He is especially known for bringing perspective to the traditional one-dimensional woodblock color print. This revolutionary introduction caused him to be viewed by his contemporaries as a truly radical artist. His impact was felt far beyond Japan. The French Impressionists, among others, were strongly influenced by his use of color and space. Most well known for his Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji, which is really 46 when he created another 10 views after the original series was complete, Hokusai also perfected the art of manga (comics), book illustrations, and erotic art. Still painting at the age of 87, Hokusai died two years later. His three-line death poem “Even as a ghost, I shall gaily tread, the summer moors.” His work is evocative of that gentle sentiment.

Genres: Art

97 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 3, 2013

About the author

Sandra Forty is a graduate of London University where she studied medieval and early modern history, including a spell at the Courtald Institute learning about Renaissance art from Professor Gombrich.

Since then she has worked as a journalist in London, then as a book editor and writer.

She is the author of a number of books, most on art and architecture.

Reviews

[Deirdre E Siegel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some of Hokusai's work

A great book filled with the useful knowledge of Sandra Forty,
and pictures fitting her words.
Thank you Sandra Forty, much appreciated :-)

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite informational, and of course included astonishing works of Hokusai. It's a good stepping stone to learning the basics of the artist, and getting to see a fine amount of his art throughout his life.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed looking at the art in this book, very famous art indeed! But because I don't know much abou art, the description in the look lost me at times.