BA Wk3 Assignment

The great Japanese artist Hokusai was prominent in the first half of the nineteenth century in the medium of woodcuts, using ink for his color. The process is extremely complex, but he dominated in the Edo period, when many artists produced brilliantly colored prints that began to be seen in Europe, especially in France, where the painters found great inspiration in the brilliance of the work. The Great Wave, his most famous work (Figure 4-7), is from his project, Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji. Here the mountain is tiny in comparison with the roiling waves threatening even smaller figures in two boats. The power of nature is the subject matter, and the respect for nature may be part of its content.

Descriptive Critic

In the "Katsushika Hokusai" art, there is a basic principle of design and this is shown by the presence of the curvaceous line of the wave. In this case, a sharp line is utilized at the tip of the waves, in this case, the water is about to engulf the stranded fisherman. This design is improving and amplifying the danger of the waves. There is also asymmetrical composition which is shown by the storm that takes over the image to ensure that it is dominating the composition. This also further highlights the risk as well as the danger of the huge waves. This reveals a sense of movement thus making the audience experience how the fishermen were helpless against the massive waves. There elements of the design like the patterns, emphasis, and amount are also available in the artwork presented in the picture. There is calmness presented by the image, nevertheless, there is a struggle for survival for life as indicated by the image of the fisherman struggling to overcome the odds (Martin & Jacobus, 2018).

Interpretive critic

Some colors in the art are muted and are soothing no reds or violent colors used by the artists. There is also the dominance of the colors like the blue which is creating a feeling of coldness and being helpless like the fishermen who are in danger of being engulfed by the huge waves. There is color white which is an indication of optimism that the fishermen are likely to endure the huge wave (Martin & Jacobus, 2018).

Evaluative critic

The images presented in the artwork indicates the feelings in life and this case, human tend to feel alive when they are closer to death (Carelli, 2018). The art also shows the unpredictability of nature and therefore, no one is aware of what might happen the next day. A human being, therefore, is not able to act against nature when the striking starts. Nevertheless, the human is capable of managing to survive through the process and overcome the odds and this is what is considered to be making a human being. It, therefore, implies that individuals who struggle against the odds can prevail and be successful in the end (Martin & Jacobus, 2018).

References

Carelli, F. (2018). Hokusai: Beyond the great wave. London Journal of Primary Care. 10(4): 128-129. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6074688/

Martin, F. D., & Jacobus, L. A. (2018). The humanities through the arts. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.