Bergbeklimmers 1831 - 1835

Curator: Welcome. Here in gallery 12, we see "Bergbeklimmers", or "Mountaineers," a woodblock print made between 1831 and 1835 by the Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. Editor: My first thought is how deceptively simple it seems. It's a rugged climb, but everyone's wearing those almost comical oversized hats. Is it a pilgrimage or just a really intense nature walk? Curator: Hokusai lived during the Edo period, a time when travel became more accessible, even fashionable. The print captures, in part, this increased social mobility, but we also should acknowledge his commercial market. Hokusai had a keen understanding of what would sell to the burgeoning middle class. Editor: It definitely has that postcard vibe, doesn't it? Like, "Wish you were here...sweating and swearing up this cliff face with me!" Seriously though, those hats look so cumbersome for such a steep climb, almost a little mocking. Is there some symbolic commentary there? Curator: One could see it that way. The hats, while practical for sun and rain, do obscure the faces, suggesting perhaps a loss of individuality within a shared social experience or religious duty. It's a print, which speaks to mass production but then there is also ukiyo-e, the focus on leisure, and earthly pleasures of the floating world... Editor: The landscape itself has this raw, almost aggressive feel. That jagged cliff and the swirling clouds – nature's really putting them through their paces. But what I find truly brilliant is the almost flattened perspective. Curator: It's very characteristic of Japanese woodblock prints. The limited palette of colors enhances that sense of depth, and you have this real push-and-pull. You know, it emphasizes not just a particular moment, but that longer passage through both place and, possibly, even purpose. Editor: Right, it’s the suggestion of narrative rather than the decisive moment captured. Well, this climb’s certainly given me food for thought – and maybe a little bit of sympathy for those hat-weary mountaineers! Curator: I hope you are rewarded by considering art's multifaceted role, offering at once social commentary, and commercial consideration. Now if you turn to your left, you'll encounter...