Title : Lake Suwa in Shinano Province

Artist : Katsushika Hokusai

Date : c. 1834 - 1835

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Source : Honolulu Museum of Art
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Description : Lake Suwa, Shinano (present-day Nagano prefecture) is located in the north of the Suwa basin, nearly a half mile above sea level. The Tenryu River flows out of the west end of this lake and empties into the Pacific Ocean. The district of Suwa was located where the Köshükaidö Road converged with another major highway, the Kisokaidö connecting Edo and Kyoto through mountainous regions. In this composition, the lake is viewed from a high position looking toward Takashima castle, the Suwa daimyo family's seat. Far beyond, a mountain visible over the horizon could be Mount Fuji, although it is a bit more rugged than the Fuji that Hokusai presented in the similar design of Lake Suwa in the Fuji series. Two men row a boat toward the left. Around the two spreading trees four men rest, one of them pointing toward the mountain. The color scheme is predominantly blue (aizuri). (Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, “Hokusai and Hiroshige”, 1998)

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