The Kibune Shrine
1786
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
About the artist
Artist
Katsushika Hokusai
Katsushika Hokusai spent his life in Edo, now Tokyo, where he drew and carved prints for a living.
See the richer artist page1786
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
The Kibune Shrine is a 1786 by Katsushika Hokusai, a Japonisme work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
This is a drawing of a Shinto shrine gate with pine trees behind it. It's mostly black ink on paper, with fine lines and dots. The gate looks simple but the trees add depth. This was actually a guide for woodblock carvers. Hokusai drew it first, then workers copied it onto wood to carve. It's one of his early works from when he signed as "Shunro." Compare this to his later prints like *The Great Wave*. See it at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
This final drawing for a woodblock print, created during Hokusai’s Shunro period (1779–1794), is one of the earliest known signed works from this phase. The group of ten drawings shares a distinctive signature style adopted by Hokusai from 1784 onward, and the sheet measures in chuban size. The drawing remains unsigned, and its provenance traces back to a 1910 acquisition from Mr. Hogitaro Inada.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Katsushika Hokusai spent his life in Edo, now Tokyo, where he drew and carved prints for a living.
See the richer artist page
