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.
Women at a workshop table apply paint to folding fans (sensu) in this surimono from the 1790s, the fan-painting trade being one of the cottage industries in which skilled women produced decorative goods for Edo's thriving gift economy. Hokusai was himself a fan designer of note, and this inside view of the fan-painting studio carries a professional familiarity with the craft depicted.
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
Women Painting Fans was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎) in 1790s.
Women Painting Fans depicts figures, craftspeople, and fans.
Women Painting Fans measures 12.8 × 18.4 cm (Oban format).
