Hokusai - Paintings • Drawings and Woodcuts

Hokusai is one of the few Japanese artists whose appeal is not restricted to those who understand and appreciate the Eastern idiom in painting. His art has indeed a universal appeal ; for despite the revolutions in our taste since Hokusai's death in 1849, enthusiasm for his work, and admiration for such masterpieces as his prints "The Wave", "Lilies" and "Fuji in Clear Weather" have in no way lessened.
In this book the author describes the slow unfolding of the artist's gifts as print designer and book illustrator, the text being accompanied by well over 100 chronologically arranged reproductions in black and white and 18 plates in full colour, ranging from the earliest book illustrations of about 1780 to a print made in the last year of Hokusai's life.
Mr. Hillier also discusses and reproduces Hokusai's paintings and brush drawings, which are little known and convey the impact of the artist's genius without the intermediary of the engraver.
An appendix gives a chronological list of all books illustrated by Hokusai, and should be of great value to students and collectors.
This is therefore the first comprehensive and fully illustrated book on Hokusai published in English. Although much has been written about the great Japanese artist and his finest colour prints are widely known, there has so far been little opportunity of seeing a truly representative selection from the work of the "old man mad with painting".