Katsushika Hokusai, a legendary Japanese artist who created over 30,000 paintings throughout his lifetime. He is celebrated for his drawings, paintings, and prints during Japan’s Edo period.

Hokusai’s artworks focused upon numerous subjects inspired by everyday life, creative imaginations, and landscapes. He gained massive popularity all across the globe for the masterpieces that he created mainly during his 60s. Hokusai’s work is widely recognized for popularizing the aesthetics of Japanese woodblock prints among the Impressionists and for its references to Japanese culture and Chinese painting. Let us take a look at some of his most famous artworks that the world admires to date.

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa is the most famous work of Hokusai and was created as a part of the series ‘Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.’ This eye-catching masterpiece is made using Prussian blue ink foreign pigment and many catchy colors over woodblock print to lead the stunning impression. The piece was popularized in Western Europe where the artist’s work influenced Impressionists like Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir.

Fine Wind, Clear Morning

This painting depicts Mount Fuji in another of Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji.  ‘Fine Wind, Clear Morning’ portrays the image of a volcano, painted in deep earthy reds. Small trees dot the mountainside, cueing the viewer as to the scale of the mountain while flat-bottomed clouds drift past its snow-capped peak. The series was produced during the middle of Hokusai’s life when he was at the peak of his career.

Cranes from Quick Lessons in Simplified Drawing

This is another very popular creation of Hokusai that depicts the simplicity and gestural quality of cranes. This painting is completed with elegant postures reflecting various movements of cranes. If you observe Katsushika Hokusai’s paintings closely, it will connect you to the deep sense of the relationship between gesture and form with the creative representation of the life of birds. This painting grabbed the attention of impressionists from around the world and can be still found in many museums.

Whaling Off Goto, Oceans of Wisdom

During Hokusai’s entire lifecycle, he created numerous series of artworks and every single painting reflected a unique concept derived from his imagination. Whaling off Goto is a popular artwork in the Ocean of Wisdom series that depicts an enormous whale and is surrounded by multiple whaling boats. This artwork incredibly showcases an impression of photographs where the frame cuts off some parts of the painting in a creative way.

Phoenix

This piece of art is distinctive from Hokusai’s other artworks. He used vibrant colors and the intricate details are highlighted in an impressive manner. This amazing artwork can be found at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston today.

The list of impressive Katsushika Hokusai artworks is never-ending and each artwork in this list showcases a unique message.