Seascapes Prints (797)
Seascape prints capture Japan's extensive coastline, harbors, and maritime culture through the woodblock medium. As an island nation with thousands of miles of coastline, Japan's relationship with the sea has been a natural subject for printmakers from the earliest days of ukiyo-e to contemporary practice. Hokusai's "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" (c. 1831) is perhaps the single most recognized image in all of Japanese art, and its dynamic depiction of ocean power set a standard for seascape composition that artists have responded to for nearly two centuries. Hiroshige's coastal views in the "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" and various province series established a more contemplative approach to maritime subjects, emphasizing harbor activities, fishing villages, and the sea's changing moods across seasons. Shin-hanga artists brought atmospheric refinement to seascape subjects. Hiroshi Yoshida's sailing vessel prints and Kawase Hasui's coastal views combined Western-influenced light observation with traditional Japanese compositional principles. The woodblock technique proves particularly suited to seascapes, as the bokashi (gradient) technique creates convincing atmospheric depth while the grain of the woodblock itself can suggest the texture of water surfaces.
Artists Known for Seascapes
Child of the Sea
1940
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Pacific Ocean, Awa Province (Boshu Taikai), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Third Series (Tabi miyage dai sanshu)"
Boshu Taikai
1925
Color woodblock print; oban
Pine Beach at Miho (Miho no Matsubara), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)"
September 1931
Color woodblock print; oban
Setting Sun over Pines, Suzukawa Beach (Tokaido fukei senshu, Matsu no sekiyo (Suzukawa kaigan)), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido"
1940
Color woodblock print
Sailing Boats: Night (Hansen, yoru), from the series "Seto Inland Sea (Seto Naikai shu)"
Hansen, yoru
1926
Color woodblock print
Kankai Pavilion, Wakaura Beach (Wakaura Kankaikaku)
1950
Color woodblock print
Junk at Sea
1915
Color woodblock print
Beach Shed at Himi in Etchū Province
September 6, 1921
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Baishinji Beach, Iyo (Iyo Baishinji no hama)
1950
Color woodblock print
Clearing after a Snowfall on Mount Fuji (Tagonoura Beach) (Fuji no yukibare (Tagonoura))
January 1932
Color woodblock print
Distant Clouds over the Sea (Kaijo un'en)
1935
Color woodblock print; oban
Sailing Boats: Morning (Hansen, asa), from the series "Seto Inland Sea (Seto Naikai shu)"
Hansen, asa
1926
Color woodblock print
Evening at Tago Bay (Tago no ura no yube), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)"
1940
Color woodblock print; oban
Hamaotsu Yacht Harbor
Woodblock print
Waka no Ura Bay
和歌浦
Woodblock print
Kude Beach in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kude no hama), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, First Series (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Crescent Moon and Sea C
1991
Woodblock print, ink and gold leaf on paper
Mano Bay, Sado Island (Sado Manowan), "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)"
1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Sea Fish
Woodblock print
Moon at Enoshima Beach (Tsukiyo no Enoshima)
1933
Color woodblock print
Moon at Enoura Beach (Tsuki no Enoura)
January 1939
Color woodblock print
Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park (One Hundred Views of Tokyo, Message to the 21st Century)
東京百景 21世紀へのメッセージ
1989-99
Woodblock print, zinc anastic plate on paper
Maiko Beach near Kobe
舞子の浜
c. 1922
Lithograph
Nagahama Beach in Mito (Mito Nagahama)
1937
Color woodblock print; oban
Nishikiura Beach, Atami (Atami Nishikiura)
1940
Color woodblock print
Ogi Harbor, Sado Island (Sado Ogi no minato), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)"
19 August 1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Seaside Cottage, Himi, Etchu, from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series" (Tabi miyage dai nishu, Hama shooku (Etchu Himi))
6 September 1921
Color woodblock print
Sea Horses
Woodblock print
Harbor View
c. 1916
Color woodblock print
Harbor Scene
港の風景
c. 1936
Color woodblock print
Inland Sea
Woodblock print
Kobe Harbor in the Morning
神戸港の朝
c. 1918
Lithograph
Great Victory of Our Forces at the Battle of the Yellow Sea, Fourth Illustration
1894 (Meiji 27)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e) triptych; ink and colors on paper
Moonlight through the Clouds off the Haneda Coast
1929 (original design by Kiyochika; published posthumously)
Color woodblock print; oban
The Occupation of the Battery at Port Arthur (Ryojunko hodai nottori no zu)
1895
Color woodblock print; oban triptych
Whirlpool - last volume
1914
Woodblock print
Nude on a beach (keyblock for an unpublished print)
Woodblock print
Sea Coast, Futomi
1956
Woodblock print
Akashi Bay, Inland Sea at Seto
Woodblock print
Fuji from Tago Bay
Woodblock print
Maiko Beach — 舞子の濱
Woodblock print
Maiko Sea Shore or Sailboats at Sunset
Woodblock print
Maizuru Harbor at Night
Woodblock print
Morigasaki Coast
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Morigasaki Coast (Morigasaki kaigan)
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Suma Beach
1938
Color woodblock print
Sunset at Tomonotsu, Inland Sea
1940
Color woodblock print
Tokaido Numazu Harbor
Woodblock print
Wave
Woodblock print
Norman Bay
1923
Pines by the Sea
1912
Color woodcut on Japan paper
Place of Worship, Shôwa period, circa 1945-1953
Shichiri Beach (Shichirigahama), from the series "Landscapes Prints (Gashu fukei hanga)"
1932
Color lithograph
Seaside Village
1920
Color woodblock print
Morning at a Seaside Village
1929
Color woodblock print
No Series Returning Junks Seto Inland Sea In Moonlight
Woodblock print
No Series Returning Junks Seto Inland Sea In Moonlight
Woodblock print
No Series Returning Junks Seto Inland Sea In Moonlight
Woodblock print
Harbour of Tomonoura
1930
Woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Seascape prints capture Japan's extensive coastline, harbors, and maritime culture through the woodblock medium. As an island nation with thousands of miles of coastline, Japan's relationship with the sea has been a natural subject for printmakers from the earliest days of ukiyo-e to contemporary practice.
Kawase Hasui, Kobayashi Kiyochika, and Hiroshi Yoshida are among the artists most associated with seascapes in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 797 prints tagged with seascapes, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.