Boy releasing a kite

Date:: c. 1800/10
Medium:: Color woodblock print; ebangire, surimono
Format:: Oban
Source:: Art Institute of Chicago

Typical Price

Later reprint or reproduction (20th-century): $50–$300
Good later impression (Edo-period): $1,000–$5,000
Good early impression (vivid color, legible detail): $5,000–$20,000
Fine early impression (exceptional color and condition): $20,000–$60,000

Hokusai's genre scenes, bijin-ga (beautiful women), and miscellaneous subjects represent the breadth of his career across more than seven decades. The market for non-landscape Hokusai prints has strengthened as collectors seek beyond the most famous designs.

Description

A young boy launches a kite into a clear sky, the taut string angling upward while he tilts his head back to track its ascent in this ebangire [surimono](/glossary/surimono) from around 1800–10. Kite-flying was a fixture of New Year celebrations for children, and Hokusai captures both the physics of the moment — body weight shifted back, arms extended — and the simple delight of a seasonal childhood pleasure.