Rainstorm beneath the Summit, 1830-1833

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Hokusai took an interest in the work of Rinpa school artists, whose boldly designed compositions were often inspired by themes from classical court painting. Hokusai must have been aware of two important sets of folding screens by earlier Rinpa artists picturing the gods of wind and thunder: one by Tawaraya Sōtatsu (active ca. 1600– ca. 1640), the other by Ogata Kōrin (1658–1716). His own renditions of those gods appear in the third volume of Hokusai manga (Random Sketches of Hokusai), published in 1815. He was probably also familiar with an interpretation of Kōrin’s wind and thunder gods by Sakai Hōitsu (1761–1828), who painted windblown autumn grasses and rain-soaked summer flowers on the reverse of Kōrin’s screens. Hokusai’s Rainstorm beneath the Summit, with its dramatic bolt of lightning, obviously stands for thunder, and his Fine Wind, Clear Weather (on view nearby) could represent wind. Hokusai may have intended these two compositions as companion pieces in his Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji series.

Details
Title
Rainstorm beneath the Summit
Artist Life
1760 - 1849
Role
Artist
Accession Number
74.1.227
Catalogue Raisonne
Ukiyo-e shūka 16 (1981), p. 229, horizontal ōban #18.32 Masterpieces from the Japanese painting collection of the Minneapolis Institute of Art ミネアポリス美術館 日本絵画の名品 Cat.57
Curator Approved

This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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