Bamboo Grove at Kume Village (Kumemura no chikuri), from the series “Eight Views of Ryukyu Islands (Ryukyu hakkei)”
c. 1832
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
25162
Art Historical Context
Katsushika Hokusai’s *Bamboo Grove at Kume Village* belongs to his 1832 series *Eight Views of Ryukyu Islands*, a rare foray into depicting the subtropical landscapes of the Ryukyu Kingdom (present-day Okinawa). Created during Japan’s late Edo period, the print reflects growing curiosity about regions beyond the mainland, even as strict travel restrictions remained in place. Hokusai never visited the islands himself; instead, he drew on travel accounts and imported imagery to evoke an exotic yet harmonious natural world. Executed as a color woodblock print in the large *oban* format, the work...
About the Artist
Katsushika Hokusai · 1760–1849
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) stands as one of history's most influential artists, a Japanese master who revolutionized the ukiyo-e woodblock print tradition and profoundly shaped Western art. Born in the Katsushika district of Edo (modern-day Tokyo) to an artisan family, Hokusai lived through nearly nine decades of extraordinary creative evolution, adopting over thirty different artistic names t...