Ushibori in Hitachi Province (Jōshū Ushibori), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)

ca. 1830–32

Not on view

Mount Fuji appears in all kinds of scenes in the thirty-six prints of the series. In a sense, Hokusai offers a world view in which the sacred mountain is omnipresent.

Here we find the bleak life of people who make their living on the water. Ushibori in the province of Hitachi (present-day Ibaragi Prefecture) is a lakeside district east of Edo. Although Ushibori is quite far from Mount Fuji—perhaps the easternmost region from which the mountain is still visible—Hokusai reassures his viewer that here, too, people live with the great mountain.

In this composition, Hokusai literally cuts the boat off in the center, by using the rocky hillock in the lower right corner to crop the unseen portion of the boat. This cropping technique gives a sense of immediacy to the picture, and the scene is further enlivened by the rush of two herons to the left, Mount Fuji stands etched solemnly in relief in the background.

Artwork Details

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Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

冨嶽三十六景　常州牛掘
Title: Ushibori in Hitachi Province (Jōshū Ushibori), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)
Artist: Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese, Tokyo (Edo) 1760–1849 Tokyo (Edo))
Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
Date: ca. 1830–32
Culture: Japan
Medium: Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions: H. 9 13/16 in. (24.9 cm); W. 13 7/8 in. (35.2 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
Object Number: JP1848
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

By Katsushika Hokusai

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Ushibori in Hitachi Province (Jōshū Ushibori), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei), Katsushika Hokusai Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — Ushibori in Hitachi Province (Jōshū Ushibori), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1830–32

Yahagi Bridge at Okazaki on the Tōkaidō (Tōkaidō Okazaki Yahagi no hashi), from the series Remarkable Views of Bridges in Various Provinces (Shokoku meikyō kiran), Katsushika Hokusai Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — Yahagi Bridge at Okazaki on the Tōkaidō (Tōkaidō Okazaki Yahagi no hashi), from the series Remarkable Views of Bridges in Various Provinces (Shokoku meikyō kiran)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1834

The Suspension Bridge on the Border of Hida and Etchū Provinces (Hietsu no sakai tsuribashi), from the series Remarkable Views of Bridges in Various Provinces (Shokoku meikyō kiran), Katsushika Hokusai Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — The Suspension Bridge on the Border of Hida and Etchū Provinces (Hietsu no sakai tsuribashi), from the series Remarkable Views of Bridges in Various Provinces (Shokoku meikyō kiran)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1830

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