"Honjo Tatekawa" from 36 views of Mt.Fuji series by Hokusai

Description : 

Honjo Tatekawa from Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji depicts the lumberyards along the Tatekawa Canal in Edo’s Honjo district, an area renowned for its timber merchants who supplied the rapidly expanding city after the Great Fire of Meireki (1657). The print captures a vivid scene of workers stacking and sawing lumber, their movements forming a rhythmic counterpoint to the stillness of Mount Fuji visible in the distance.

Hokusai’s mastery of composition is evident in the bold use of vertical and diagonal lines. The stacked timbers on the left and the towering bundles on the right frame the composition like two architectural pillars, creating a channel view that draws the eye toward the tranquil mountain beyond. Despite the dynamic activity in the foreground, the image remains meticulously balanced — a study in both geometry and motion. The lumberyard’s signboard reading “Nishimura Okiba” and inscriptions such as “Eijudō Shiire” and “Shinpan Sanjūroku Fuji Shiire” function as clever meta-references, promoting the publisher and the print series itself.

Beyond its technical precision, the work reflects Edo’s urban vigor and the human will to rebuild. The laborers’ gestures — tossing, sawing, balancing — symbolize the industrious energy of a society that turns destruction into creation. Through this contrast between man-made structures and the natural presence of Fuji, Hokusai suggests a philosophical harmony between human endeavor and enduring nature. The print thus stands as both a documentary of Edo’s economic landscape and an allegory of resilience and order in the face of change.

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