In 1814 the ukiyo-e artist Katsushika Hokusai published a handbook of sketches titled Hokusai manga. Fourteen more
volumes followed over the next decades, for a series totaling more than 4,000 illustrations over 970 pages; not only
did the publication surpass its initial ambitions to serve as a reference for aspiring artists, it grew into a
bestseller and enduring favorite. Now available in a compact and reorganized but complete modern reprint, the sketches
present in concentrated form all the themes, motifs, and drawing techniques to be found in Hokusai’s art.
Delight in the spirited and richly narrative caricatures, satirical drawings, and multiple-panel “comic strips,” and
you’ll surely understand why this landmark body of work is considered one of the roots of today’s manga.
Volume 1, The Life and Manners of the Day, brings together depictions of life in Edo-period Japan, from people and
mores right down to daily household articles.
Commentary by Seiji Nagata (Ota Memorial Museum of Art)
With an interview of artist Makoto Aida
