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Thunder god
1847
In the upper right portion of this painting is the Thunder God, who beats the drums carried on his back during storms. Japanese painters enjoyed depicting this deity among rolling clouds and sparks of lightning. Hokusai's painting reflects his virtuosity in capturing the latent energy of the deity as he hovers among black clouds splattered with ink to express the violence of the storm.
A phenomenally prolific artist, Hokusai produced sketches, paintings, prints, and the illustrations for more than two hundred woodblock-printed books during his lifetime. This work, which gives his age as 88 (by Western calculation, 87), displays the skill and energy that he retained even in the last years of his life. |