The Great Wave By Katshushika Hokusai

1. Created by a woodblock print on paper technique, the work of art, titled The Great Wave, was painted by the artist Katshushika Hokusai during the edo period around 1831. It is nearly 10” x 15” in size and is currently located at the Honolulu Academy of Art in Hawaii.

2. The great wave is Hokusai’s most famous work of art. It is composed of one huge wave and a couple smaller waves. There are two boats with about eight passengers in the foreground. The passengers have anonymous faces and are huddled together, bracing for the impending impact of the wave. Mount Fuji is near the center of the background. The wave is depicted in a menacing, grasping form. The oncoming boats appear to be succumbing to the enormous wave, disappearing behind the
A painting can not be reproduced. Created solely by the artist, who also owns the piece, paintings are made on a single media, typically a canvas or wood, via a brush and paints. Brush strokes can be seen in paintings, adding beauty and texture to each one of these works of art. Conversely, a print can be reproduced hundreds of times, as long as the carved wooden block has not worn down. The artist merely draws the outline of the print onto a sheet of paper, and it is sent to a carver. The carver places the image, face down, on a wooden block, typically cherry, and cuts through the paper, following the original brush strokes. Once carved and the original drawing is destroyed, the block is sent to a painter who paints one color onto the block and transfers the paint onto a new sheet of paper in a rubbing motion with a hand tool. Should the piece require more colors, a new block is carved from a stamp, one block for each separate color, and then each color is layered on individually. This printing process can be repeated until the block is too worn. When the block wears down, it is sanded down to a blank slate and carved again into another piece of art. These mass produced prints can be sold to as many people as possible, while a single painting cannot. Alternatively, while a painter owns his work, in printing, it is the publisher, not the artist, carver, nor the printer owns the
Katsushika Hokusai was a highly successful Japanese artist of the 19th century. He believed in a perpetual quest of growth and learning, claiming his work before turning 70 was worthless. He set forth goals for his progress with the desire to be so knowledgeable that his paintings would essentially be alive. During his earlier years, Hokusai painted various series of manga art that illustrated several scenes he had observed in his life, obsessively illustrating poses of dancers, sumo wrestlers, and even women bathing. These manga pieces certainly influenced the work of his apprentices as well as other artists such as European artist Edgar Degas. Hokusai was also known as the first artist to use Prussian blue paints which were permanent pigments, unlike the other paints previously used. His use of Prussian blue became so popular other artists began using it all over the