A Peasant Crossing a Bridge, from the series A True Mirror of Chinese and Japanese Poems

Katsushika HokusaiWW-1835-031964

1835·Color woodblock print; nagaban·50 × 23.2 cm (19 11/16 × 9 3/16 in.)

An old peasant returns from gathering the two bundles of horsetail rushes, which hang from a pole across his shoulder. Of the various poems about gathering rushes in the old anthologies, it is thought that Hokusai had in mind this poem from a 1303 collection: When I was cutting horsetails The autumn moon appeared Shining through the trees On Mount Sonahara. (Translated by Matthi Forrer) In this series of ten prints, the relevant poem was not included in the design. Instead, the artist challenged the Edo audience’s love of puzzles. Viewers enjoyed determining the source of a poem and its author.

Catalogue

Year: 1835
Medium: Color woodblock print; nagaban
Dimensions: 50 × 23.2 cm (19 11/16 × 9 3/16 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Katsushika Hokusai

Artist

Katsushika Hokusai

Painting

Katsushika Hokusai was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period, active as a painter and printmaker. His woodblock print series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji includes the iconic print The Great Wave off Kanagawa. Hokusai was instrumental in developing ukiyo-e from a style of portraiture largely focused on courtesans and actors into a much broader style of art that focused on landscapes, plants, and animals. His works had a significant influence on Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet during the wave of Japonisme that spread across Europe in the late 19th century.

Tokyo, Japan

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