Hokusai, First Manga Master

Hokusai, First Manga Master

More than a hundred years before Japanese comics swept the globe, the master engraver Hokusai was producing beautiful, surreal, and often downright wacky sketches and drawings, filled with many of the characters and themes found in modern <I>manga</I>. These out-of-context caricatures, which include studies of facial expressions, postures, and situations ranging from the mundane to the otherworldly, demonstrate both the artist’s style and his taste. In addition to the landscapes for which he is beloved, Hokusai’s <I>mangas</I> reveal his compassion for farmers, artisans, and peasants, as well as his keen eye for the absurd.