Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) | Fly-fishing (Kabari-nagashi) | Edo period, 19th century

Five anglers fish from a shallow bank off a narrow, swift-running river. Each casts their lures into the current beneath a steep, forested cliff face. The figures carry triangular ukedamo – a net of hemp stretched between two rods to receive caught fish. One angler raises his ukedamo to take in his catch; three fish are visible on his line, indicating the use of a multiple branch-hook rig. Tall mountains recede into the distance; not a single dwelling is in sight. Wiped gradation (fukibokashi) applied to the water and cliff faces suggests the fresh air and light of early summer.

The print depicts kabari-nagashi, a fishing technique in which hooks fashioned from feathers or similar materials to resemble mosquitoes or other insects, known as kabari, are drifted downstream to catch freshwater fish such as sweetfish (ayu) and dace (haya). The precise location of the setting is unknown.

One Thousand Pictures of the Ocean is a set of ten prints depicting scenes of fishing and maritime labour along the sea and rivers of the Kanto region and beyond. The series comprises Fly-fishing (Kabari-nagashi), Choshi in Shimosa Province (Soshu Choshi), Noboto in Shimosa Province (Shimosa Noboto), The Tone River in Shimosa Province (Soshu Tonegawa), Uraga in Sagami Province (Soshu Uraga), Fishing by Torchlight in Kai Province (Koshu hiburi), Bowl-trap Fishing in the Kinu River (Kinugawa hachifuse), Line-fishing in the Miyato River (Miyatogawa naganawa), Whaling off the Goto Islands (Goto kujira tsuki), and Fishing with Handheld Nets (Mochi-ami). Among Hokusai's woodblock print series, One Thousand Pictures of the Ocean is considered exceptionally rare, with very few impressions surviving.

A similar impression of the same print is in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 21.6699, go to:

https://collections.mfa.org/objects/234362

A further impression is in the collection of the Tokyo National Museum, object number A-10569_645, go to:

https://webarchives.tnm.jp/imgsearch/show/C0083918

The sale proceeds of this work will benefit The Egmont Trust. For more information about the charity please visit: https://www.egmonttrust.org.