Katsushika Hokusai
Today is Katsushika Hokusai’s birthday, so we’re celebrating one of the most influential artists in Japanese art. Born in 1760, Hokusai was a master of ukiyo-e woodblock printing. His bold compositions and unexpected viewpoints influenced generations of artists in Japan and, later, European artists such as Monet, Degas, and Van Gogh.
But today is also Halloween! In this wonderfully creepy print, the ghost of a struggling and vengeful Kabuki actor, Kohada Koheiji, emerges from behind a brilliant blue mosquito net. His enormous skeletal hands clutch its red edge, his eyes bulge from their sockets, and his mouth stretches into a disturbing grin. Koheiji has returned to take revenge on his unfaithful wife and her lover, who conspired to murder him by drowning him in Asaka swamp. The print belongs to Hokusai’s series One Hundred Ghost Tales, inspired by a popular game in which people gathered at night to tell supernatural stories by candlelight. After each story, one candle was extinguished, gradually plunging the room into darkness—with the thrilling expectation that a real ghost might appear when the final light went out. Despite its title, only five designs from Hokusai’s series are known to have been published. With its exaggerated anatomy and macabre humor, the series also anticipates the visual language of later Japanese manga and horror art.
P.S. Happy Halloween! If you’d like to have a little Hokusai at home (ghost included!), you can find The ghost of Kohada Koheiji in our DailyArt Shop; we have prepared a special collection of his prints that includes two of his most iconic masterpieces: The Great Wave off Kanagawa and Red Fuji.
P.P.S. If you're still looking for more spooky art, we’ve got you covered: here are 10 haunting paintings to set the mood.