Alright folks, let’s talk about that Japanese art thing I got myself into today. Decided I wanted to write something about famous artists over there, you know? “Amazing Stories, Famous Works” sounded good.
Where’d I even start? Typed “big names Japanese artists” into the search bar, obviously. What a struggle! Pages and pages. Like opening a box that spills a hundred more boxes. Felt totally lost at first, just scrolling and clicking, clicking and scrolling.
Stumbled on Hokusai almost right away. Of course! The wave guy. That painting everyone knows – ‘The Great Wave’. Read a little. Did you know he changed his name like thirty times? Thirty! And he said all his good work wouldn’t happen until he hit 100? Talk about planning ahead. Jeez. I mean, he only made it to 89, so what does that say? Felt kinda bad for him, honestly. Kept digging anyway.
Then I bumped into this Yayoi Kusama lady. Wow. Her story is… something else. Spots everywhere! Polka dots on everything. Tents, mirrors, furniture, you name it. She’s been doing this for decades, lived in a mental health place by choice for ages, still making wild art right now. Obsession turned into genius? Or just pure guts? Couldn’t look away. Read about her early days trying to get seen in New York, sleeping on the floor. Talk about persistence.
Almost gave up finding a third. Kept reading more names, half their paintings looked kinda similar, honestly. Then, Hiroshige pops up. Him and his travel posters? Ukiyo-e stuff. Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō – turns out people loved these scenes back then. Like Instagram travel pics, but way before cameras. Sold like crazy, copies all over the place. Guess sometimes the crowd-pleasers become classics. Funny how that works.
So, scribbled down a few messy notes:
- Hokusai = The Wave Guy, renamed himself a ton, late bloomer dream.
- Kusama = Dot Queen, battled hard to be seen, still at it.
- Hiroshige = Famous landscapes, hit the big time like a rockstar.
Felt a bit out of my depth, not gonna lie. So much history jammed into these artists. Started trying to pick just three famous pieces to talk about. Impossible! Almost gave up. Had that “this was a stupid idea” moment, staring at the screen.
Sighed loud enough my cat looked up. Poured another coffee. Said to myself, “Just pick ONE thing for each that feels right.”
- Hokusai’s wave? Yeah, no question.
- Kusama’s mirrored rooms? Absolutely wild.
- Hiroshige’s rain bridge? Gotta have one, feels right.
Put it all together, hit save. Finally. Realized while typing this out – maybe the point isn’t knowing everything, it’s finding the crazy human bits mixed in with the paint. Passion, struggle, maybe a little madness. That stuck with me more than the history dates. I’m no history buff, but those stories? They hit different.
