Gama Sennin, from the series Ibaraki no keshin c. 1843 - 1847

Curator: This woodblock print is by Utagawa Kuniyoshi, a master of the ukiyo-e style. The work is titled "Gama Sennin, from the series Ibaraki no keshin," and is held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: What strikes me first is the sheer strangeness, this odd assembly of people and, well, so many frogs! Curator: Indeed. Gama Sennin is a toad wizard, and Kuniyoshi frequently incorporated folklore and myth into his art. The presence of the frogs suggests themes of transformation and metamorphosis. Editor: The imagery definitely sticks with you. It's got this dreamlike quality, and those eyes, staring right through you. You know, art doesn't always have to make perfect sense to be memorable, right? Curator: Precisely! The power of symbols lies not always in clear definition but in their capacity to evoke emotional responses and resonate with the collective unconscious. Editor: Well, it's certainly croaked its way into my memory. Curator: Kuniyoshi's genius here is to use that shock to open a portal into a deeper understanding of folklore and cultural memory.