Wave
Medium
wood engraving
Dimensions
image: 16.9 × 19.6 cm · sheet: 25.1 × 30.3 cm
Classification
Department
Prints
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Dudley P. Allen Fund
Accession Number
1997.5
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Nabismale
About this artwork
The color woodcuts of Katsushika Hokusai were highly esteemed. One of his most famous prints, The Great Wave off Kanagawa (1823-31), is a striking image of an enormous cresting wave. Maillol exploited the curling water motif to achieve an energetic linear design that surrounds and cushions the nude woman but also creates a lively contrast to the large, flat white shape of her body. A precursor to Maillol's future work as a sculptor, Wave reveals the artist's interest in conveying the sensual cur...