36 Views of Mount Fuji, Tsukuda Island in Musashi Province, Katsushika Hokusai, Japanese Print

Tsukuda Island in Musashi Province is a very calm work of art. It depicts boats floating around the eponymous island. Fishermen can be seen working on the boats, and in the distance we see the green mountains with their white snow capped peaks. The rich, simple colours are very pleasant to behold and yet when the viewer looks more closely at the painting they see that it is a very intricate work of art.

Tsukuda Island in Musashi Province is often described as a rhythmic painting. It is given this title because of the way in which the form of one object will be reflected in the form of another object. For instance, the boat laden with cotton bales has a form that echoes that of Mt Fuji itself. There is thus a sense that everything is connected.

Hokusai created the “Thirty-Six Views” both as a response to a domestic travel boom and as part of a personal obsession with Mount Fuji. It was this series, specifically The Great Wave print and Fine Wind, Clear Morning, that secured Hokusai’s fame both in Japan and overseas. As historian Richard Lane concludes, “Indeed, if there is one work that made Hokusai’s name, both in Japan and abroad, it must be this monumental print-series”. While Hokusai’s work prior to this series is certainly important, it was not until this series that he gained broad recognition.

All prints are made using archival art stocks and UV pigment inks to give up to 200 years life. Choose from unframed, framed and mounted and canvas panel options.