Once Upon a Time (Mukashi mukashi)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
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.
Mukashi mukashi — "Once upon a time" — is the traditional opening phrase of Japanese folk narratives, suggesting this print served as a frontispiece or title page to an illustrated tale or kana-zoshi story collection. The subject situates Hokusai within the broad tradition of Edo popular fiction illustration that ran parallel to his print and sketchbook work throughout his career.
1821
Color woodblock print with metallic pigments; surimono shikishiban
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
c. 1832
Color woodblock print; oban
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Once Upon a Time (Mukashi mukashi) was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎).
Once Upon a Time (Mukashi mukashi) depicts figures and mythology.
