HOKUSAI'S The Great Picture Book of Everything at the British Museum

A tour of Hokusai's The Great Picture Book of Everything at the British Museum. Never before been seen together; here are some excerpts. There's so much here (of course, he was so ambitious and wanted to paint the whole world). It's an encyclopaedia. More on Hokusai later this year. (I'll teach Chinese, and by extension Japanese and Korean, painting eventually; I want to get the manuscript miniatures out first.) Enjoy... everything!

This is Hokusai.

I love compilations, collections, encyclopaedias, dictionaries, thesauri ('treasure chests') and treasure in general.

The drawings were small - really like miniatures! - and fit into this box.

Not a mistake but the legendary thumb for scale.

And without for clarity.

I recognised some of these stories from Chinese creation myths (incidentally - creation myths from around the world - what a rich source of inspiration!).

Painting within a painting - so fond of these - in the form of a mirror. Fox spirits famous in Chinese and Japanese culture as far as I know, shapeshifters.

Here it is! The famous Wave!

Little studies crowding a page can make up a painting in its own right.

Such a beautiful Japanese landscape, not by Hokusai but still of this era.

Snow!

Used to teach children - part of my 1001 Nights project so I like this concept in general - teaching through painting. One of the many functions of painting.

The movement in his animals is incredible.

And the convincing wind.

Dancing on hooves.

Kirin I think is Qilin in Chinese. Was once mistaken for a giraffe. Mythical beast.

I LOVE this quotation!

Gorgeous magical porcupine.

And a camel.

Ostrich is less convincing I feel.

Beautiful peacock, king of birds.

Tortoise shell.

Coral. All part of the cabinet of curiosities.

Spot the difference between the following two prints:

Answers:

Rather sad looking elephant.

Amazing.

So strange - curiosities!

Rocks!

Pow! Vajra.

Reminiscent of Marco Polo/Mandeville.

One of the best prints in the show I think. Reaching - and touching - the moon.

I loved its moon-like display too.

Love these instructions!

Interesting.

Muscle memory.

Multitasking - painting and weightlifting.

Took these right at the end as an afterthought, sorry - thought I'd better get some info as an introduction to the show!