Hokusai’s Lost Drawings: A Major Rediscovery
The British Museum’s New Acquisition
The British Museum has recently acquired a trove of 103 newly discovered drawings by renowned Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai, best known for his iconic masterpiece “The Great Wave Off Kanagawa.” These rediscovered illustrations, which date back to 1829, were originally intended for publication in a book titled “Great Picture Book of Everything.”
Hokusai’s Creative Vision
Hokusai’s series of drawings depicts a wide range of subjects, including religious, mythological, historical, and literary figures, as well as animals, flowers, landscapes, and other natural phenomena. The illustrations span ancient Southeast and Central Asia, with a particular emphasis on China and India.
The Book that Never Was
Despite Hokusai’s intention to create a book showcasing his illustrations, it was never published. The reasons behind this remain unknown. However, the failure of the book’s publication ultimately ensured the survival of the drawings.
Rediscovery and Digitization
The drawings resurfaced last June when the British Museum purchased them with support from the Art Fund charity. They have now been digitized and are available to view online, providing art enthusiasts worldwide with an opportunity to explore Hokusai’s creative genius.
Hokusai’s Imagination and Exoticism
Hokusai’s drawings capture his incredible powers of creativity and imagination. They fuse what he observed around him with his own vivid imagination, creating a unique and captivating world on paper.
Sakoku and the Longing for the Exotic
At the time Hokusai created these drawings, Japan was under a policy of national isolation known as sakoku. This policy restricted travel abroad, fostering a longing for the exotic and the unknown. Hokusai’s drawings provided a way for Japanese people to experience other cultures and landscapes, even if only through his artistic vision.
A Prolific Artist
Hokusai was an incredibly prolific artist, producing an estimated 30,000 images over his 70-year career. The British Museum now houses a collection of more than 1,000 of his works, including these newly acquired drawings.
Western Museums and Cultural Ownership
The acquisition of Hokusai’s drawings has sparked conversations about Western museums’ ownership of other cultures’ artworks. Some have questioned the ethics of Western institutions holding and displaying artifacts from non-Western cultures, especially those acquired through colonialism.
Future Plans
Curators at the British Museum plan to use the rediscovered illustrations to draw connections with similar sketches at other institutions, such as the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Eventually, the museum plans to exhibit the works in a free display for the public to enjoy.
Conclusion
The rediscovery of Hokusai’s “lost” drawings is a major event in the art world. These illustrations provide a valuable glimpse into the mind of a creative genius and offer insights into Japanese culture and society during the sakoku period. The British Museum’s acquisition and digitization of these works ensures that Hokusai’s legacy will continue to inspire and captivate audiences for generations to come.
