Burdock Root (Kurama gobo), from the series "A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi)"
- Date:
- 1822
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Burdock Root (Kurama gobo), from the series A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi), is a Katsushika Hokusai [ukiyo-e](/glossary/ukiyo-e) print from around 1822, held in the Art Institute of Chicago. The Uma-zukushi was a privately commissioned [surimono](/glossary/surimono) series produced for the Year of the Horse, with each sheet pairing a witty title or allusion with imagery loosely connected to horses. The Kurama gobo, a long slender root associated with Mount Kurama outside Kyoto and famous in Japanese cuisine, appears here as both visual subject and pun, since 'Kurama' evokes the legendary mountain where the warrior Yoshitsune trained in swordsmanship under tengu. Hokusai's design plays across vegetable still life, classical reference, and equine theme, with the burdock root's elongated form echoed by tools, ropes, or other carefully arranged objects. The composition rewards close reading and conversation, exactly the kind of layered wit that surimono patrons prized. As an Edo ukiyo-e print, the work showcases the technical refinement of surimono: metallic pigments for gleaming highlights, blind embossing for subtle texture, and intricate color separations available only to privately funded editions. The Art Institute of Chicago preserves this ukiyo-e print as part of its broad holdings of Hokusai surimono, documenting Katsushika Hokusai's ability to compress poetry, food, history, and humor into a single sheet.
1821
Color woodblock print with metallic pigments; surimono shikishiban
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
c. 1832
Color woodblock print; oban
1820
Color woodblock printed book, one volume
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Burdock Root (Kurama gobo), from the series "A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi)" was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎) in 1822.
Burdock Root (Kurama gobo), from the series "A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi)" depicts landscapes.