No single image from Japan, possibly even all of Asia, has been reproduced so often or undergone so many reincarnations in so many parts of the world as Hokusai’s “Under the Wave off Kanagawa.” -Christine Guth
At once abstract and concrete, this great wave is arguably the essence of the modern art movement. Hokusai’s work exemplifies destruction and renewal, and the devastatingly beauty of the natural world, and it does so in a very simple way.
Art like this appeals to us because, by nature, I believe we are simple human beings. And although we may share different cultural upbringings, we are made, not to live alone, but to live in unison. Through this reciprocity, all humans ultimately share some common roots and ideas. The pop culture binds all nations this way. By appealing to our natural aesthetic inclinations of simplicity and beauty, we can trickle up to a hybrid cosmopolitan culture in which all regions become linked by harmony.
Here is an awesome quote by Hokusai himself in which he brings to light the universality of ideas:
“From the age of six I had a mania for drawing the shapes of things. When I was fifty I had published a universe of designs. but all I have done before the the age of seventy is not worth bothering with. At seventy five I’ll have learned something of the pattern of nature, of animals, of plants, of trees, birds, fish and insects. When I am eighty you will see real progress. At ninety I shall have cut my way deeply into the mystery of life itself. At a hundred I shall be a marvelous artist. At a hundred and ten everything I create; a dot, a line, will jump to life as never before. To all of you who are going to live as long as I do, I promise to keep my word. I am writing this in my old age. I used to call myself Hokosai, but today I sign my self ‘The Old Man Mad About Drawing.”
You see, artists work internally rather than externally. This means that they don’t seek meaning, but instead seek methods that can bring life to the feelings that they know already exist. They never question the metaphysical reality of culture itself, but instead, question its appearance in their visual art. However, even if we do share different cultures, there are common trends that artists hold. Even though different cultures influence their art forms respectively, art is slowly transforming into something that is less complex and exclusive, to something that is more pertinent to the world wide community.
The Great Wave is the predecessor to all art forms in the modern art movement. If you aren’t convinced, then you should take a look at this timeline of artwork from different periods. Watch the evolution of these artworks. See how they change over time, but also, how there are certain qualities in them that remain, more or less, the same.
Timeline 1 (1870-1930) http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/timelines/modern_art_timeline.htm
Timeline 2: 1916- 1975
http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/timelines/modern_art_timeline_part_2.html
The artwork of Hokusai draws attention to the universality of ideas and people. It enables us to rethink creativity. But above all, it challenges the closed thinking of boundaries and limits, inside and outside, centers and peripheries.
Hokusai’s great wave is an example of how the cold war of the ideas of globalism have been negotiated and beautified into art.
We can conclude that work of Hokusai exemplifies a more nuanced approach to the complex world, a form that many artists would embody thereafter, a form of art we would know consider “Pop.” It is important to understand our roots.
And why is it important to understand these roots? And how does this relate to Anthropology? Well, in understanding simple aesthetics, we can use these findings in a bazillion ways! Whether you’re into marketing and branding, or a musician, if we understand our common inclinations of ourselves and others within any sort of medium ( it doesn’t have to be art), we can change the world. For example, imagine visual art pieces that motivate you just like a really really awesome song might- if we understand how these simple feelings tie and how to use these feelings, we can create “moving” art; we can change the world.
In other words, let’s forget religion, boundaries and borders, and let’s think about the things that make us human. These things don’t have to be complex. They will most certainly be very simple, but that’s a great start. Now express these various similarities in your own personal ways. For example, I express love with the music that I create or cover. Find your own niche of expression and share it. For those small moments that we share our love, we are human together. Happiness is shared.
Sources:
http://andreas.com/hokusai.html
Click to access guthgreatwaves2011.pdf
What can you do with anthropology? 
This is interesting but not based on anthropological analysis.
Hi Professor Torres, I’ve added some other sources that influenced my blog post. Also, I’ve added a section that links the post to anthropology. If you read the source about the “Full Dollar Project” which is one of the last two sources, you can understand a little about what I was trying to get at.