Hokusai: 30,000 Works, 70 Years, the Great Wave at Age 70, and ‘Give Me Five More Years’ at 88

Last updated: May 2026 · By Stanislav Arnautov · Berlin

Katsushika Hokusai (c. October 31, 1760 – May 10, 1849) is the most globally recognised Japanese artist in history and one of the most productive artists in the history of any visual tradition: approximately 30,000 works across a 70-year professional career. He changed his name approximately 30 times, as was customary in the Japanese artistic tradition for marking major stylistic changes; his final working name was “Gakyo Rojin Manji” (“The Old Man Mad About Drawing”), adopted at approximately 83. He is known globally for a single image — the Great Wave — which he made at approximately 70, as the first plate of a series that he would continue producing for the rest of his life. DeckArts Berlin from ~$140. External references: Metropolitan Museum of Art — The Great Wave; National Gallery London — Hokusai. View Great Wave at DeckArts →

Hokusai’s Biography: 30,000 Works, 70 Years, 30 Names

Hokusai was born in the Edo period in what is now the Sumida ward of Tokyo, probably in October 1760. His father was a mirror-maker who made mirrors for the shogunate’s household. Hokusai began his professional training in the ukiyo-e (woodblock print) tradition in the workshop of Katsukawa Shunshō, one of the leading ukiyo-e masters of the mid-Edo period, in approximately 1778.

The 30 names: changing one’s artistic name (gō) was standard practice in the Japanese artistic tradition, typically used to mark a major change of style, school, or artistic phase. Hokusai changed his name more frequently than almost any other major Japanese artist: approximately 30 times across his career. The most important names in his succession: Shunrō (his first professional name, used 1779–1792); Souri (1797–1798); Hokusai Sori (1797–1798); Katsu Hokusai (later simplified to Hokusai); Taito (c.1811–1819); Iitsu (1820–1833, the period that includes the Great Wave); Manji (1834–1849, the final period). The name “Hokusai” — which means approximately “Northern Studio” or “Star of the North” — is the name by which he is universally known, though it was technically his “Iitsu” period name.

The productivity: approximately 30,000 works across 70 years = approximately 428 works per year = approximately 8 works per week. Every week, for 70 years. Hokusai worked in every available medium: woodblock prints (both the preparatory designs and, in some cases, the cutting and printing processes); brush painting (sumi-e); sketching (the manga, the pictorial encyclopaedias for which he is a secondary but significant cultural reference); illustrated books; fan designs; and decorative objects. He worked on a reed mat laid on the floor — sitting cross-legged, working at floor level, for 70 years.

The residential instability: Hokusai moved house approximately 93 times in his life — an extreme even by Edo-period standards. The most commonly proposed explanations: his dislike of cleaning (he reportedly moved rather than cleaned); a deliberate disruption of accumulated domestic routine to maintain creative freshness; and the specific circumstances of his personal and financial life (he was frequently in debt and moved to avoid creditors). He died at approximately 88 or 89, in a temporary dwelling in Asakusa, Tokyo.

The Great Wave: Plate 1 of 46, Not 36

The Great Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa-oki nami ura, Under the Wave off Kanagawa, c.1831, woodblock print, 25.7 × 37.9 cm, multiple editions) is the most reproduced Japanese artwork in history and one of the most recognised images in all of visual art history. It is Plate 1 of Hokusai’s series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku Sanju-rokkei).

The title’s common misconception: the series is called “Thirty-Six Views” but contains 46 plates. Hokusai originally planned and designed 36 plates; the series was so popular that he added 10 more, bringing the total to 46. The additional 10 plates are sometimes distinguished as the “back 10” (ura Fuji) but are considered part of the same series. The Great Wave is Plate 1 of the complete 46-plate series.

The composition: a massive breaking wave fills the foreground and left of the composition. The wave’s crest extends to the right, its frothy tips pointing downward like claws. Three boats (oshiokuri-bune, a type of fast rowing boat used for transporting fresh fish) are visible in the wave’s shadow, their crew members clinging to the gunwales. Mount Fuji, depicted as a small cone in the background right, is approximately the same visual scale as the wave’s foam flecks in the foreground. The compositional argument: the wave is enormous and the mountain is permanent. The wave is terrifying in the moment; Fuji endures. The boats proceed, neither defeating the wave nor being defeated by it.

The specific visual innovation: the Great Wave uses a compositional device that was extremely unusual in Japanese woodblock prints of the period but extremely familiar from Western oil painting — a strong foreground element that frames the distant background. This compositional cross-pollination (the Western-influenced framing device used in a Japanese graphic print medium) is one of the most specific examples of the two-way cultural exchange between Japanese and European visual traditions in the 19th century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds one of the finest impressions of the Great Wave in its collection.

Prussian Blue: The Berlin Pigment That Reached Japan

The Great Wave’s dominant colour is Prussian blue (Berorin-ai, ベロリン藍 — literally “Berlin blue” in Japanese, a phonetic transliteration of “Berlin” + ai, the Japanese word for blue dye). Prussian blue was invented in Berlin in 1704 by Johann Jacob Diesbach; it reached Japan via the Dutch East India Company’s trading post on the island of Dejima in Nagasaki harbour at approximately 1820; Hokusai adopted it as the dominant colour of his Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji series c.1831.

Before Prussian blue, Japanese woodblock printers used indigo-based blues (traditional Japanese ai, from the Persicaria tinctoria plant, or imported Indian indigo). These indigo blues were less saturated, less stable under UV light, and more expensive than the new European synthetic pigment. Prussian blue’s specific deep cool saturation — peak reflectance at approximately 495–500 nm — was immediately recognisable as qualitatively different from the indigo blues, and Hokusai adopted it for the dominant chromatic argument of the Thirty-Six Views series.

The material circle: DeckArts ships its Great Wave reproduction from Berlin — the city where the Great Wave’s dominant pigment was invented 322 years ago. Berlin 1704 (Prussian blue invented by Diesbach) → Japan c.1820 (arrived via Dutch East India Company, named Berorin-ai — Berlin blue) → Hokusai c.1831 (Great Wave Plate 1) → DeckArts Berlin 2026 (UV archival reproduction shipped from city of invention). See: Prussian Blue: Invented Berlin 1704.

The Deathbed Words: Five More Years

Hokusai died on 10 May 1849, at approximately 88 or 89 years old (the exact date of his birth is not precisely documented). His reported deathbed words — spoken in the form of a poem, in the traditional Japanese deathbed tradition — are among the most specific and most cited last words in the history of art:

“If Heaven had only granted me five more years, I could have become a real painter.”

The specific biographical argument of this statement: Hokusai was approximately 88 or 89 years old, had been a professional artist for 70 years, had produced approximately 30,000 works, and had created the most globally recognised Japanese image in history. And he said: five more years, and I would have become a real painter. The professional humility of this statement — the specific refusal to consider 30,000 works in 70 years a completed achievement — is the most specific single biographical argument for Hokusai’s position as the practitioner of sustained creative work at the highest level. As The Guardian’s Hokusai coverage consistently notes, the deathbed words are the most-cited single biographical statement in ukiyo-e scholarship.

The domestic argument for the Great Wave above the desk or above the gym rest pause position: Hokusai at approximately 88, 30,000 works behind him, saying “five more years” — the most specific biographical argument available against the specific human tendency to believe that the current level of effort is insufficient to justify continuation.

Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji: The Series That Made Him Famous at 70

The Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku Sanju-rokkei) was published between approximately 1830 and 1832, when Hokusai was approximately 70–72 years old. The series established his global reputation — not just within Japan but internationally, as the Dutch East India Company’s trade through Dejima brought Japanese prints to European collectors and eventually to Van Gogh, who collected approximately 500+ Japanese woodblock prints in Paris and Antwerp in the 1880s and explicitly cited Hokusai among his primary influences.

The series’ 46 plates all depict Mount Fuji from different locations and in different seasons, times of day, and weather conditions. Fuji is sometimes large and prominent (Plate 1, the Great Wave, depicts Fuji as a small background element); sometimes small and distant; sometimes almost invisible in the atmospheric haze. The series’ compositional programme: Fuji as a permanent element observed from different positions of human activity — from boats, from farms, from workshops, from markets, from temples. The human activity changes; Fuji endures.

The series used Prussian blue (Berorin-ai) as the dominant chromatic element from its first plate, giving the entire series a consistent cool blue visual language that distinguishes it from earlier ukiyo-e series. The adoption of Prussian blue for the Thirty-Six Views is the single most specific technical decision in the series and the one that most directly connects the series to its European material context. See: Hokusai Great Wave: Complete Guide.

Ukiyo-e: The Floating World Tradition

Ukiyo-e (浮世絵, literally “pictures of the floating world”) is the Japanese woodblock print tradition that flourished in the Edo period (1603–1868). The “floating world” (ukiyo) referred to the transient pleasures of urban life — the kabuki theatre, the geisha district (yoshiwara), the sumo ring, the tea house. The ukiyo-e tradition depicted these subjects in woodblock prints that were mass-produced (typically in editions of hundreds or thousands) and sold at affordable prices to the urban merchant and artisan classes.

The technical process: a ukiyo-e print is produced through a collaborative process involving the designer (eshi, the artist who produces the drawing), the block-cutter (horishi, who cuts the design into multiple wooden blocks, one per colour), and the printer (surishi, who applies pigment to the blocks and transfers them to paper). Hokusai designed the Great Wave; the block-cutting and printing were carried out by craftsmen in Nishimuraya Yohachi’s publishing house in Edo. The Great Wave exists in multiple editions, printed at different times with different degrees of accuracy and different ink qualities; the finest early impressions (from the initial publication run of c.1831) are the most sought-after and the most specifically studied by scholars.

Van Gogh’s relationship to ukiyo-e: Van Gogh collected over 500 Japanese woodblock prints in Paris and Antwerp in the 1880s. He wrote to his brother Theo: “All my work is founded on Japanese art”. The specific compositional influences of ukiyo-e on Van Gogh’s work include: the use of bold outline (replacing Western tonal modelling with linear contour); the flat-colour zones without atmospheric depth (the same flatness that Matisse later developed in Fauvism); and the specific compositional device of through-foreground-branches perspective that Van Gogh used in the Almond Blossom (explicitly referencing a Hiroshige work in his letters). The ukiyo-e tradition’s influence on Western Post-Impressionism (Van Gogh, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec, the Nabis) was one of the most significant cross-cultural visual exchanges of the 19th century. As National Gallery London’s Hokusai resources document, this exchange continues to be studied by scholars of both Japanese and European art history.

Great Wave on a Skateboard Deck

The DeckArts Hokusai Great Wave is available as a single deck (~$140) and a diptych (~$230). The Great Wave’s Prussian blue dominant palette, flat-colour Japanese woodblock graphic convention, and natural water subject make it the most versatile classical art object in the DeckArts range — it works in every room, on every wall colour, in every interior style from Japandi to dark academia to contemporary.

On warm white under 2700K warm LED: The canonical Japandi installation. The Prussian blue dominates as the room’s single cool chromatic event from the warm neutral ground. The wave’s white foam advances as the warm event from the cool Prussian blue field. The warm amber grain of the maple deck’s edges participates in the warm white neutral’s ambient. The most restrained and the most Japandi-specific installation.

On navy under 2700K warm LED: The most dramatically chromatic installation. The Prussian blue of the wave merges with the navy wall; only the white foam and the warm ochre boats advance. Mount Fuji’s pale blue-grey silhouette merges with the combined cool field. The most visually dramatic Great Wave installation.

On pale grey under 2700K: The most architecturally specific installation. The Prussian blue advances as a cool chromatic event from the cool neutral grey. The warm amber grain of the maple edges participates in the grey’s warm neutral field. The most contemporary minimalist installation.

Hokusai Great Wave — Single (~$140) or Diptych (~$230)

30,000 works 70 years · “Give me five more years” at ~88 · Prussian blue from Berlin 1704 · UV archival 100+ years · Canadian maple · ships Berlin

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Room-by-Room Installation Guide

Japandi living room above sofa (canonical): Single (~$140) or diptych (~$230) on warm white above compact sofa at 155–165 cm centre. The one-cool-accent Japandi formula. One Prussian blue event, nothing more. See: How to Style a Japandi Living Room 2026.

Home gym rest pause position: Single (~$140) on warm white or warm charcoal at 155–165 cm facing the rest pause position. The boats under the overwhelming wave, proceeding. Hokusai at ~88: “five more years.” See: Wall Art for a Home Gym 2026.

Above the kitchen sink: Single (~$140) on warm white tile or warm white wall above the sink. The natural water subject above the domestic water position. The most contextually specific above-sink installation in the DeckArts range. See: Wall Art for a Kitchen 2026.

Nursery (high-contrast visual development): Single (~$140) on warm white facing the crib. Prussian blue and white foam: maximum high-contrast chromatic pair for infant visual development. Natural water subject. Japanese artistic authorship. See: Wall Art for a Nursery 2026.

FAQ

How many paintings did Hokusai make?

Approximately 30,000 works across a 70-year professional career. This includes woodblock print designs, brush paintings, illustrated books, and sketches. His deathbed words (c.1849, at approximately age 88–89): “If Heaven had only granted me five more years, I could have become a real painter.” He changed his artistic name approximately 30 times to mark major stylistic changes; his final working name was “Gakyo Rojin Manji” (“The Old Man Mad About Drawing”). Metropolitan Museum of Art. DeckArts from ~$140.

Why does the Great Wave use Prussian blue?

Prussian blue (Berorin-ai, ベロリン藍, “Berlin blue”) was a newly available European synthetic pigment that reached Japan via the Dutch East India Company c.1820. Hokusai adopted it as the dominant colour of his Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji series c.1831. Its specific deep cool saturation (peak reflectance ~495–500 nm) was significantly more vibrant than the traditional Japanese indigo blues it replaced. Prussian blue was invented in Berlin in 1704; DeckArts ships Great Wave reproductions from Berlin. See: Prussian Blue: Invented Berlin 1704. DeckArts from ~$140.

What is the Great Wave a picture of?

A large breaking ocean wave in the foreground, with three oshiokuri-bune (fast rowing boats) in the wave’s shadow, their crew members clinging to the gunwales. Mount Fuji is visible in the background right as a small pale cone. The wave’s crest extends over the composition with frothy downward-pointing foam tips. Plate 1 of Hokusai’s Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (46 plates total), c.1831, woodblock print, 25.7×37.9 cm. Multiple institutions hold fine impressions including the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York. DeckArts from ~$140.

Related Guides

• Hokusai Great Wave: Complete Art History Guide
• Prussian Blue: Invented Berlin 1704, Arrived Japan 1820
• How to Style a Japandi Living Room 2026
• Van Gogh Almond Blossom: Japanese Compositional Source
• Wall Art for a Home Gym 2026

Article Summary

Hokusai biography wall art: Katsushika Hokusai born c. October 31 1760 (probably in what is now Sumida ward Tokyo; father mirror-maker for shogunate household); professional training Katsukawa Shunshō ukiyo-e workshop c.1778; 30 names (gō, artistic names marking major stylistic changes; Shunrō 1779–1792; Souri 1797–1798; Hokusai; Taito c.1811–1819; Iitsu 1820–1833 = Great Wave period; Manji 1834–1849 final period; Gakyo Rojin Manji = “The Old Man Mad About Drawing” adopted ~83); productivity: ~30,000 works 70 years = ~428/year = ~8/week every week for 70 years; all media (woodblock print designs, brush painting sumi-e, manga pictorial encyclopaedias, illustrated books, fan designs, decorative objects); worked on reed mat on floor cross-legged; moved house ~93 times (dislike of cleaning / creative freshness / debt); died 10 May 1849 Asakusa Tokyo aged ~88–89 in temporary dwelling. Great Wave: Kanagawa-oki nami ura c.1831, woodblock print, 25.7×37.9 cm; Plate 1 of Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (series called Thirty-Six but actually 46 plates: original 36 + 10 added due to popularity; additional 10 sometimes distinguished as “back 10” ura Fuji); composition (massive breaking wave foreground left, crest extends right with frothy clawed tips pointing downward; three oshiokuri-bune fast rowing boats in wave shadow, crew clinging to gunwales; Mount Fuji small pale cone background right, approximately same visual scale as wave foam flecks = compositional argument: wave enormous + terrifying in moment, Fuji permanent, boats proceed neither defeating nor defeated); Western-influenced compositional device (strong foreground framing distant background = unusual in Japanese woodblock, familiar from Western oil painting = two-way cultural exchange); MET New York fine impression. Prussian blue: Berorin-ai (ベロリン藍) = phonetic transliteration of “Berlin ai” (“Berlin blue”); invented Berlin 1704 Diesbach; arrived Japan via Dutch East India Company Dejima Nagasaki c.1820; Hokusai adopted c.1831 for Thirty-Six Views dominant colour; before Prussian blue: indigo-based ai (less saturated/stable/more expensive); Prussian blue peak reflectance ~495–500 nm deep cool saturation immediately qualitatively different; DeckArts ships from Berlin = material circle Berlin 1704 (invention) → Japan 1820 (Berorin-ai) → Hokusai 1831 (Great Wave) → DeckArts Berlin 2026. Deathbed words: died 10 May 1849 aged ~88–89; reported deathbed poem: “If Heaven had only granted me five more years, I could have become a real painter”; 30,000 works 70 years behind him, still said five more years = most specific biographical argument against tendency to believe current effort insufficient to justify continuation; Guardian Hokusai coverage = most-cited statement ukiyo-e scholarship. Thirty-Six Views: published c.1830–1832 when Hokusai ~70–72; established global reputation; Dutch East India Company → European collectors → Van Gogh (collected 500+ Japanese prints, “All my work is founded on Japanese art”, cited Hokusai among primary influences); all 46 plates depict Fuji from different locations/seasons/times of day/weather; compositional programme: Fuji permanent element, human activity changes; Prussian blue dominant = consistent cool blue visual language distinguishing series from earlier ukiyo-e. Ukiyo-e: 浮世絵 “pictures of the floating world”, Japanese woodblock print tradition Edo period 1603–1868; “floating world” = transient pleasures of urban life (kabuki, yoshiwara, sumo); mass-produced in hundreds/thousands, sold affordable prices to urban merchant/artisan classes; collaborative process (eshi designer + horishi block-cutter + surishi printer); Hokusai designed, Nishimuraya Yohachi’s publishing house cut and printed; finest early impressions most sought-after; Van Gogh ukiyo-e influence (bold outline replacing tonal modelling; flat-colour zones without atmospheric depth; through-foreground-branches perspective; Almond Blossom = Hiroshige reference Letter 854); ukiyo-e influence on Western Post-Impressionism (Van Gogh/Gauguin/Toulouse-Lautrec/Nabis); National Gallery London Hokusai resources. On deck: warm white 2700K (canonical Japandi, one cool chromatic event, white foam warm event from cool field, most restrained); navy 2700K (most dramatic, Prussian blue merges with navy, only foam + ochre boats advance); pale grey 2700K (most architecturally specific contemporary minimalist). Installation: Japandi living room (canonical one-accent warm white); gym rest pause (“five more years”, boats under wave proceeding); above sink (natural water subject above domestic water); nursery (maximum high-contrast Prussian blue + white for infant visual development). MET New York + National Gallery London + Guardian Hokusai references. DeckArts from ~$140. Canadian maple. UV archival 100+ years. Berlin. 30-day return.

About the Author

Stanislav Arnautov is the founder of DeckArts and a creative director from Ukraine based in Berlin.