RISD Museum

Looking at the objects around you, consider how many of them were created by an artist or designer. Artists and designers are problem solvers, inventors, and skilled technicians; they express the complexity of human experience in their times, communicate ideas, fulfill practical needs, and challenge us to stretch our own views. Explore different artists and designers who represent a broad range of time periods and cultures.

Viewing Sunset over Ryōgoku Bridge from the Onmaya Embankment

Kajikazawa in Kai Province (Koshu kajikazawa)

Katsushika Hokusai Japanese, 1760-1849 Nishimuraya Yohachi, publisher Japanese Rainstorm Beneath the Summit (Sanka hakuu) from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei), ca. 1830-1831 Polychrome wood block print Horizontal ōban: 25.1 x 36.7 cm (9 7/8 x 14 7/16 inches) Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 20.1186

This print is part of Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, a series made when artist Katsushika Hokusai was in his seventies. The series was so successful that Hokusai produced 10 additional scenes after the first 36 prints. Appreciated in their own time in Japan and in other countries for their innovative composition and vibrant color, these works are the result of Hokusai’s experiments with representing nature and his innovative use of the synthetic pigment Prussian blue. The elements of water and earth are the dominant subjects of this print. Mount Fuji, still and stable in the background, counters the dynamic power of the great wave, and the humans in the barges in the foreground, possibly carrying fish, seem fragile and vulnerable. The title lets us know that this is a real place: Kanagawa is a prefecture (or province) of Japan along the coast near Mount Fuji.

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Write a haiku inspired by Hokusai’s print that captures its imagery and mood.

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

To encourage students to think about what makes this image so powerful, ask them to focus on how Hokusai used scale, color, and line. Make your own observations about what you notice about scale (the size of different parts in relation to each other), color and types of lines. Circle important areas and write your notes about these key elements. Discuss your observations.

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Katsushika Hokusai, Under the Great Wave, off Kanagawa, ca. 1829-1833

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Katsushika Hokusai, Under the Great Wave, off Kanagawa, ca. 1829-1833

Artists’ Ideas, Materials, & Process: Under the Great Wave

Under the Great Wave, off Kanagawa