Katsushika Hokusai Rectangular Crystal Paperweight Great Wave Off Kanagawa 1829 1832

This beautiful hand-cut paperweight features the iconic woodblock print masterwork "Under the Wave Off Kanagawa" by the Edo Period Japanese Katsushika Hokusai. This rectangular crystal paperweight includes a felted bottom for a sophisticated finish, and it comes in an elegant gift box. The Great Wave Off Kanagawa is the first print from the series “Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji”. In his homeland Japan, Hokusai’s work was rather considered as “everyday graphics”, whereas in Europe his art contributed to Japonism, inspired artists like Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Egon Schiele and Gustav Klimt and also influenced Art Nouveau. This series of prints is characterized by the significant use of Prussian blue, a new color fashionable in the 1830s, and by the occasional use of Western techniques for representing perspective. Hokusai’s Ukiyo-e (translates to “Pictures of the fleeting world”) prints reflect scenes of landscapes, and individuals engaging in everyday life activities and leisure.