The Great Wave off Kanagawa

The eponymous Great Wave
circles the centre of the woodcut
in an exaggerated piling up of water
as when two waves pass through
each other and multiply their height
and over-face themselves.


We are far out to sea off Kanagawa
as we can see once we notice
the dwarfed Mount Fuji
placed as if the wave is
about to crash down on it
spume dropping like snowflakes
onto the snowclad mountain top.
The mountain once noticed.
is made up of different curves
– those of a volcanic cone
and not these monstrous imaginings
of the Great Wave.

We can be forgiven for not noticing
a whole mountain, not least because
the same limited palette of Prussian,
Cerulean, and Sky Bue with hints of
black are used throughout
with a mushroom coloured sky
louring over the distant Fuji
camouflaging its presence
– hidden in plain sight
– even when framed by the action.

On further examination, we may realise
we have missed two fishing boats
lying flush in the curve of the troughs
between the Great Wave and its siblings
each boat crewed by ten souls
in peril on the deep
– eight clinging for dear life
in the stern of each boat and two
for some unaccountable reason
further for’ard.
Certainly these boats and fishermen
are in peril, as are all seafarers
though I am not
convinced their craft are not
designed to weather
such waves as these
shipwrights know their seas…


The Great Wave of Kanagawa
is an artist’s conceit
a representation of possible peril.
to capture the imagination
of a people who live in permanent peril
– from volcanoes, earthquakes, and
they gave us the very word tsunami
and this representation of
perfectly frozen in place peril
is the epitome of Japanese style
– an image that like few others
is known around the world
printed on bags and worn on T shirts
or simply hung on walls
from Fuji to Finland
from Tokyo to Timbuktu
a universal icon of the raw power
the peril and heedless beauty
of the sea – indeed of all of nature
before which all we
mortal men
may tremble
and do defy
at our peril…

© Andrew Wilson, 2024

It is OLN – Open Link Night over at dVerse Poets Pub which is hosted tonight by Mish. As a mini prompt she shared Katsushika Hokusai’s  “Tiger in the Snow” which may have been his final creation. But I had already written an Ekphrastic poem about Hokusai’s most famous image “The Great Wave Off Kanagawa” and it is that poem I chose to share tonight. it was written in my writing group where we considered the woodcut…

17 thoughts on “The Great Wave off Kanagawa

  • November 22, 2024 at 9:14 am
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    I love how Hokusai’s ‘Tiger in the Snow’ led you back to your ekphrastic poem about his most famous image, one of my favourites, Andrew, and that it drew me into the woodcut even though I wasn’t looking at it. The sibilant ‘circles the centre of the woodcut’ evokes the sound of the piling up of water, and the image of ‘spume dropping like snowflakes onto the snowclad mountain top’ is beautiful, as is the use of colour: Prussian, Cerulean, and Sky Blue with hints of black’. But it’s the drama of the two fishing boats that grabbed me.

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    • November 22, 2024 at 9:18 am
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      I wonder how many people have seen the wave without noticing the boats – at least for a while…
      Thanks Kim!

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  • November 22, 2024 at 10:33 am
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    What a great description of the work!

    I always had a postcard print of the Wave on my wall as a student. But didn’t notice the boats until they were pointed out to me by an art historian!

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    • November 22, 2024 at 10:38 am
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      I am sure you were not alone, Kim…

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  • November 22, 2024 at 12:34 pm
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    A wonderful commentary on the Great Wave. I haven’t looked at it in a long time, and never so deeply. The people on the boats in such peril!

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    • November 22, 2024 at 11:49 pm
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      Thanks Merril – I was one of those who just saw the wave and failed to see the boats for a long time but I hope I have made up for it here…

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  • November 23, 2024 at 12:46 am
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    I’ve seen images of the Great Wave so many times, but never looked at it so carefully before. Thank you for leading me to look at it properly. I had noticed mount Fuji and the boats before, but not that there were only 3 shades of blue used, or that the sky was mushroom coloured. 🙂

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    • November 23, 2024 at 9:31 am
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      Thanks Kate – I was worried it was too much description – we write for 20-25 minutes in our writing group and pieces expand to fill the time…

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  • November 23, 2024 at 2:05 pm
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    I love the details you forget if you just see the waves, it is like in life were what is most important hides in plain sight.

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    • November 23, 2024 at 11:16 pm
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      So many people, including myself, have confessed to not noticing the boats for many times looking at the woodcut and its striking wave…

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  • November 23, 2024 at 2:23 pm
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    How wonderful the way the mini prompt led you to sharing this gem. You eloquently pulled out the details for us ” hidden in plain sight – even when framed by the action.” Also,at this moment, I can’t help but feel a metaphorical vibe to this, giving this piece another layer.

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    • November 23, 2024 at 11:15 pm
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      Do you mean beyond the study of peril which must surely resonate for the Japanese in particular but perhaps for all of us under the threat of climate changed weather or do you sense some other metaphor, Mish?

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    • November 24, 2024 at 6:26 pm
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      Yes there is so much more to it on close examination – thanks Colleen…

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  • November 25, 2024 at 6:13 pm
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    Love this homage to a great artist which captures the enduring power of his artistry as it captures the magnitude of the sea’s power and the comparative puniness of man and even mountain. Beautifully written, Andrew!

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    • November 25, 2024 at 8:06 pm
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      Thank you Dora, if there was atop 100 of popular images I wonder where this one would come…

      Reply
  • November 26, 2024 at 6:39 am
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    Wonderful imagery throughout your poem. I must confess I have never looked at this painting as closely as I did today when ready your poem. You’ve captured the drama so well. It is so true that mortal men although they tremble do defy the power of nature at their peril.

    Reply

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