Shôgi stenen 1822

Editor: This is “Shogi Stones” by Katsushika Hokusai, a print from 1822, and it's currently at the Rijksmuseum. It's fascinating how Hokusai captured this little scene, a snapshot of, well, a Shogi game interrupted? The composition feels carefully constructed, even with its slightly off-kilter perspective. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I'm struck by the juxtaposition of the ephemeral and the enduring. The shogi pieces themselves, bearing their kanji characters, speak of strategy and calculated moves. The game as a symbol for life's unfolding narratives of decisions, challenges, and victories. But placed beside the delicate bonsai… Editor: …you mean the plum blossoms in that beautiful blue-and-white pot? Curator: Yes. That introduces another layer of meaning. Plum blossoms in East Asian art often symbolize resilience, hope, and the fleeting nature of beauty. This temporary beauty sits upon the board where strategy prevails. How might we read this pairing? Does the fleeting bloom undermine strategy or compliment it? Perhaps the image proposes beauty will outlast all challenges or calculations. Editor: That’s a thought. Maybe it's saying that life, like shogi, has rules and strategies, but it's also about appreciating the present moment, like the plum blossoms? Curator: Precisely. The very ephemerality of the blossom gives urgency to life, a reminder that its strategic game may quickly transform from ordered patterns to chaos at any moment. What do you make of the symbols painted in calligraphic style on the stones? Editor: From a symbolic standpoint, everything seems intentional here; nothing is without purpose. I will need to look up each calligraphic letter on each stone. Curator: An iconographer’s job is never finished, I say, so much cultural context embedded in simple things. Thanks to ukiyo-e printmakers, though, we can ponder.