"Bay of Noboto" from 36 views of Mt.Fuji series by Hokusai

Description : 

Katsushika Hokusai’s Bay of Noboto (Noboto no ura), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (c.1830–34), depicts clam diggers at low tide framed by the monumental torii gates of Noboto Shrine, today located in Chiba City. Hokusai strategically compresses spatial distance by placing the gates closer together, creating a visual frame for Mount Fuji on the horizon. This compositional device elevates the mountain as a sacred presence within the daily rhythms of labor and leisure.

Technically, the print is an oban yoko-e woodblock, produced with multiple color blocks including Prussian blue (bero-ai), which had recently entered Japan via Dutch trade and transformed ukiyo-e palettes. The geometry of the torii (vertical, angular, static) contrasts with the animated curves of people digging, chatting, and carrying baskets. Such juxtapositions—large and small, sacred and ordinary, static and dynamic—reflect Hokusai’s mastery of oppositions.

Historically, Noboto Bay functioned as a maritime hub for tribute rice and marine products shipped from the Bōsō Peninsula to Edo. The print thus bridges art and infrastructure, sacred space and commercial life, embodying both Edo-period logistics and Hokusai’s aesthetic vision.

Hokusai Katsushika : 
Known simply as Hokusai, was a Japanese Ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period, active as a painter and printmaker. 
He is best known for the woodblock print series Thirty six views of Mt Fuji, which 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 are thought to have had a significant influence on Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monete during the wave of Japonism that spread across Europe in the late 19th century.

REPRODUCTION : In the 20th century, artists and publishers collaborated to recreate famous woodblock prints, providing them to Japanese collectors and Westerners seeking rare designs.
New blocks were made, and artisan printers painstakingly printed each color using the same method as the 19th-century originals.

Limited edition lithograph
Hand-printed, numbered 180/300 on margin.
Size : 
410mm x 600mm