From Tradition to Innovation: the Life and Creative Legacy of Katsushika Hokusai

This article is dedicated to the work of Katsushika Hokusai, the most famous Japanese artist of the ukiyo-e movement, a printmaker, woodblock printmaker, and the author of a vast number of works, more than thirty thousand of which, including fifteen serial albums, have survived to this day. His name is associated with the flourishing of the landscape genre in classical Japanese woodblock printing and the "surinomo" genre–prints in the form of greeting cards for various holidays. Hokusai created easel prints and book illustrations, monumental paintings and picture scrolls, and painted screens and various objects. Having lived a long life of nearly ninety years, he created his best works after seventy. His works are distinguished by a philosophical worldview and meticulous attention to detail. The master's innovative approach to creating compositional integrity in his drawings draws on the ancient traditions of Japanese painting. Hokusai's work played a significant role in the development and popularization of Japanese artistic culture.