Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)
Kajikazawa in Kai Province
甲州石班沢 · Kōshū Kajikazawa
Katsushika Hokusai · c. 1830–32
What it is
A fisherman braces on a rock spit above the surge at Kajikazawa, lines taut in the current, a boy at his back; Fuji lifts out of the mist beyond.
Why it matters
In its first edition this design was printed entirely in blues — an aizuri-e made to show off the imported Prussian blue that made the whole series possible.
What to notice
The fisherman, his lines, and the rock make a triangle that repeats Fuji exactly — the man has taken the mountain's shape without knowing it.
"Cast the line. The mountain waits with you."
The record
- Artist
- Katsushika Hokusai 葛飾北斎 (1760–1849)
- Series
- Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)
- Date
- c. 1830–32
- Publisher
- Nishimuraya Yohachi (Eijudō)
- Medium
- woodblock print; ink and color on paper
- Source
- The Art Institute of Chicago · 1934.261
- aizuri
Impression note. The earliest impressions are aizuri-e, printed in shades of blue alone; later printings add earth tones to the rock and figures. A fine impression holds the mist's graded blue unbroken between water and mountain. Impression variance is real — printings differ in wiping and fading — and choosing the finest openly held impression is the curatorial act.
Public domain; faithfully reproduced.
Bring it home
Printed to order on EMA matte art paper, 200gsm.
From the same series
Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)Under the Wave off Kanagawa (The Great Wave)Katsushika Hokusai · c. 1830–32
Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)Fine Wind, Clear Morning (Red Fuji)Katsushika Hokusai · c. 1830–32
Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)Thunderstorm Beneath the SummitKatsushika Hokusai · c. 1830–32
Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)Ejiri in Suruga ProvinceKatsushika Hokusai · c. 1830–32The road at your moment — Painted Earth’s ukiyo-e style pack.