The British Museum pays tribute to one of the greatest artists to come out of Japan with its exhibition Hokusai: Beyond the Great Wave. Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849) produced a number of astonishing works right up until his death at the age of 90. He is renowned for creating some of the most well recognised and visually enriching pieces known to the art world—including Under the Wave off Kanagawa (1832), more commonly known as The Great Wave...
A collector’s obsession with Japanese art: Hokusai reminds us of the exceptional influence his Japanese art has had on the western world. It was the time when Vincent Van Gogh was collecting woodblock prints, many that were discarded packaging from goods shipped from Japan to Europe. As is well known, Van Gogh became strongly influenced by the style, as did many other painters of the period, including Gauguin, Monet, and Toulouse-Lautrec, and this influence from Japan changed...
