雪月花 淀川|Moonlight on the Yodo River (Yodogawa), from the series Snow, Moon, and Flowers (Setsugekka)

雪月花 淀川|Moonlight on the Yodo River (Yodogawa), from the series Snow, Moon, and Flowers (Setsugekka) by Katsushika Hokusai

Medium

Woodblock print; ink and color on paper

Dimensions

9 7/8 x 14 7/8 in. (25.1 x 37.8 cm)

Classification

Prints

Culture & Period

Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)

Department

Asian Art

Museum

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

Credit

Henry L. Phillips Collection, Bequest of Henry L. Phillips, 1939

Accession Number

JP2922

Tags

Human FiguresRiversMoonTreesBoats

Art Historical Context

Katsushika Hokus's *Moonlight on the Y River (Yodog)*, from the seriesSnow, Moon, and FlowersSetsugekka)*, the serene beauty of a moonlit night along Japan's Yodo River around 1833. This wood print depicts boats gliding on the water, silhou trees, and distant human figures, evoking traditional Japanese aesthetic of *setsugekka*—the fleeting wonders of snow, moon, flowers as symbols of nature's ephemeral elegance. Hokusai, a master of ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world"), infuses the scene with poetic tranquility, highlighting everyday landscapes in a way that feels intimately profound. ...

About the Artist

Katsushika Hokusai · 17601849

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...

    Send Feedback

    We use this only to reply to your feedback.