Tokaido Hodogaya, from the series "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)"
1830–33
Medium
Color woodblock print
Dimensions
25.8 × 37.4 cm (10 1/8 × 14 11/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
86999
Art Historical Context
Katsushika Hokus's *Tokaido Hodogaya*, from the renowned series *Thirty-six Views Mount Fuji (Fug sanjurokkei)*, captures a dramatic vista along the historic Tokaido road during Japan's Edo period (1830–33). This color woodblock print showcases Mount Fuji rising majestically behind everyday travelers and locals at the Hodogaya post station, blending the sacred peak with bustling human activity. Hokusai, a master of ukiyo ("pictures of the floating world"), revolutionized landscape art by emphasizing Fuji's timeless beauty from unconventional angles, making it accessible to all social classes t...
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...