Kökler ve Kemikler — Arife Kalender

If you think you know Hokusai 1760 1849 think again Long before The Great Wave the great master turned his hand and eye to something altogether more intimate From maidservants and wives to courtesans lovers and curious onlookers and yes an infamous pair of frisky octopuses Hokusai s shunga literally spring pictures are bold joyful and often laugh out loud funny This comprehensive portfolio brings together eight complete books and print sets from 1786 1823 with many of their accompanying narratives penned by the artist himself Blending the visual with the verbal the pages brim with exaggerated anatomy impish voyeurism tender exchanges and a surprisingly egalitarian attitude to enjoyment for both sexes In contrast to the prudery of 18th century Europe Edo period 1603 1868 Japan accepted sexuality as a natural part of life With shunga officially banned but tolerated in practice many reputable artists navigated government censorship to embrace the genre with gusto albeit under pseudonyms These works were made to entertain to arouse and even used for good luck samurai carried them as talismans when going into battle Technical innovations in printing during Hokusai s lifetime allowed for rich colours and exquisitely rendered textiles but the content remained delightfully human full of risky rendezvous stolen moments and scenes of marital or extra marital bliss Realized with new photography of these rare works and complemented by an in depth introduction and explanatory essays this retrospective offers gorgeous glimpses into a lesser known but wildly imaginative thread in Hokusai s over 70 year career proof perhaps that great masters have their guilty pleasures too Tanıtım Bülteninden