Hokusai Katsushika was a prolific and influential artist of 19th century Japan, particularly well known for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints. In 1827 Hokusai began producing his most famous work, the series of prints known as "36 Views of Mount Fuji". Another 10 prints were later added to the series.
In 1985 Roger Zelazny wrote "24 Views of Mount Fuji, by Hokusai", for which he won a Hugo award in 1986. The story was inspired by the protean face of the mountains near his Santa Fe home, and on an abridged collection of Hokusai's prints with which he was familiar. The novella is divided into 24 chapters, each named after one of the prints, and each the setting for the chapter's events. The effect is a sort of literary pavan; lyrical, graceful, and tragic.
Having read and appreciated the story, I became intensely curious concerning the prints themselves, and resolved to locate as many of them as I could on the internet. After considerable searching, I succeeded in finding all twenty-four prints. These I present below, along with the titles cum chapter headings, excerpts from the story, links to larger scale imagery and, in some cases, poetry I selected to go with the images.
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Twenty-four ways of looking at Mt. Fuji. It struck me that it would be good to take one thing in life and regard it from many viewpoints, as a focus for my being, and perhaps as a penance for alternatives missed.
- from 24 Views |
Tim Eagen
June, 1998
Updated on October 17, 2014
