Designer: Katsushika Hokusai | Carver: David Bull | Printer: Yasue Tsushima

Paper size: 11cm by 15cm | Enlargement | Shipping Code: [HC] ? | Currency: $ / £ / €

Price: $ 40.00£ 32.25€ 36.75

Description: The inspiration for this little print came from an illustrated book by that most well-known artist in the world - Katsushika Hokusai. Entitled "Hokusai Gafu" (Drawings by Hokusai) and published in 1830, it contains no text at all, just a dozen or so of his designs, including a few landscapes that do not depict any particular location, but seem to be imaginary creations.

This one - trimmed down in size from the original book page - has the notation 'Snowy Dawn' and provides us with a clear lesson in one of the most important aspects of traditional Japanese prints - the fact that much of their attractiveness comes from the beautiful paper on which they are made. No white pigment was needed to depict the snow in this landscape - what you see in those places is the natural paper itself, bleached white by the winter sun during the final drying on large boards in the paper-making village, in a process unchanged since Hokusai's day.