Published by Yuuyuudou- Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) – Senju in Musashi Province – From the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji

Description

Woodblock print (reprint) Published by Yuuyuudou- Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) – Senju in Musashi Province – From the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji – Late 20th century

Published by Yuuyuudou

Carver: Maeda Kentarou 前田謙太郎
Printer: Itou tarou 伊藤太郎

Senju was an important suburb of Edo, and a departure point for journeys to the north. As a result, it was a bustling district filled with shops providing services to travelers. However, Hokusai shows an out-of-the-way corner with a view looking out beyond rice fields to the Arakawa (Ara River) and Mount Fuji in the distance. Sitting above a canal, two fishermen look out over the expanse, joined by a man leading his tired horse past a floodgate that frames the volcano. The hapless turtle tied to the horse’s rein might be intended as a gift for the man’s children. Hokusai used the strong vertical lines of the floodgate to prevent his landscape from becoming flat. He often employed devices such as this to emphasize the distance between the foreground and the view in the distance.