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| Artist | Katsushika Hokusai |
|---|---|
| Year | c. 1829–32 |
| Type | color woodcut |
| Dimensions | 25.7 cm × 37.8 cm (10.1 in × 14.9 in) |
The Great Wave off Kanagawa (神奈川沖浪裏 Kanagawa Oki Nami Ura, lit. "Under a Wave off Kanagawa") is a famous woodblock print by the Japanese artist Hokusai. It was published in 1832 (Edo Period) as the first in Hokusai's series 36 Views of Mount Fuji and is his most famous work. It depicts an enormous wave threatening boats near the Japanese prefecture of Kanagawa. As in all the other prints in the series, Mount Fuji can be seen in the background. While sometimes assumed to be a tsunami, the wave is more likely to be a large okinami. (Japanese "ocean wave".) Like the other prints in the series, it depicts the area around Mount Fuji under particular conditions.
Copies of the print are in many Western collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the British Museum in London, and in Claude Monet's house in Giverny, France.
It is also featured in the Japan Rail Pass.
Copies and derivative works
Like other well known Japanese prints, the Great Wave has been frequently copied using the same techniques, as well as reproduced by photo-mechanical means. These copies are often confused with the authentic original print.
The print is one of the most reproduced artworks in the world, and was one of the subjects of the BBC documentary series, "The Private Life of a Masterpiece", which detailed the fascination surrounding the work in the East and West, its influence, and the artists insights into a number of different areas, as revealed through the piece.
Notes
- ^ The version depicted here is the copy in the Library of Congress, from a later edition
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: The Great Wave off Kanagawa |
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art's (New York) entry on "The Great Wave at Kanagawa"
- Academic site on Hokusai's "Great Wave" print
- Rilke's "Der Berg" (The Mountain) poem inspired by the "36 Views"
- Katsushika Hokusai and Japanese Art
- The Great Wave by Hokusai - artelino
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