Hokusai: Inspiration and Influence

The Museum of Fine Arts Boston (26 March–16 July) brings together more than 100 of the Japanese master Katsushika Hokusai’s woodblock prints, paintings and illustrations alongside work by his contemporaries, teachers, students and rivals. Spanning the full breadth of Hokusai’s seven-decade long career, the show includes many of his best-known works, including Fine Wind, Clear Weather (or Red Fuji) (c. 1830–31) which is presented alongside works by his student Totoya Hokkei. A section devoted to the artist’s most recognisable print, Under the Wave off Kanagawa (The Great Wave) (1830–31), explores how the work has inspired countless interpretations throughout history, from Andy Warhol’s The Great Wave (1980–87) to a recreation by the professional Lego craftsman Jumpei Mitsui. Find out more on the MFA’s website.

Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary

Under the Wave off Kanagawa or the Great Wave, from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (c. 1830–31), Katsushika Hokusai. Courtesy Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

The Fish or The Fish and Flowering Branch (c. 1890), John La Farge. Courtesy Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Japanese Waterfall (1925), Löis Mailou Jones. Courtesy Museum of Fine Arts, Boston