Finding Courage in the Chaos

Hokusai, The Great Wave, 1830, woodblock

I believe that we all recognize the chaos and challenges we are living through today. But we must face them with courage and determination and hope. Hokusai’s “Great Wave” is a beautiful example of courage in the midst of chaos.

Katsushika Hokusai (c. 31 October 1760 – 10 May 1849), known simply as Hokusai, was a Japanese artist of “ukiyo-e”, which means “floating world”, referring to the temporary nature of life. He expressed this through his woodblocks and paintings. Born in Edo (now Tokyo), Hokusai is best known as an artist of the woodblock print series, “Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji”, which includes the internationally renown print, “The Great Wave“. Hokusai is considered by many Western artists, critics, and art lovers alike, as the most prominent Asian artist.

Hokusai draws the viewer into the foreground by placing a threatening gigantic wave about to crash down on three fishing boats. We feel the panic of the oarsman struggling to survive. As the wave breaks, its foam forms a claw-like crest ready to devour the boat and oarsmen who appear insignificant. The wave creates an empty space. Many art scholars believe that this space allows us to see Hokusai’s central focus, a small but solid Mt Fuji. The mountain is a symbol of strength and power of an isolated Japan, vulnerable to foreign attack. In the Buddhist tradition, Mt. Fuji, the sacred and tallest mountain in Japan, held the secret to immortality (Fuji means “not death”). Hokusai focuses on one wave that is about to break. The wave and the oarsmen are frozen in time.

The great wave moves left to right like Westerners read. Hokusai uses geometry to build the composition. Circles and triangles allow our eyes to move around the print. A diagonal line connects the great wave to Mt. Fuji. A smaller wave is in front of the great wall of water and echoes the shape of Mt. Fuji in the background. These simple shapes suggest motion and create visual dynamics. The new and vibrant synthetic pigment from Europe, Prussian blue, creates subtle highlights on the water and definition in the waves. Dark blue, a “cool” color, is pervasive throughout the woodcut and emits the feeling of powerlessness. Hokusai makes a curl between the wave and the sky; it resembles the yin/yang symbol. The sea is stormy, yet the sun continues to shine.

Hokusai is asking us to reflect upon the tranquil moment before a wave breaks and chaos erupts. One cannot predict Nature. Waves can be deadly. They can destroy us or we can go with the flow and believe in ourselves and fight.

Lost Innocence

Winslow Homer, “Snap the Whip”, 1872, oil on canvas, Butler Institute of American Art.

Winslow Homer, one of the most renown 19th-century American artists, painted Snap the Whip, one of his most most beloved paintings, only a few years after America’s horrific Civil War. Children are depicted playing this game in front of their small, red schoolhouse. They are pulling and tugging one another with fun abandonment. Their faces are illuminated by the soft light peeking through the clouds. The landscape—the mountains, the trees, the flowers—are tangible. The painting speaks pure innocence and simplicity.

Growing up in the 1950s and 60s, though a century later, I remember playing kickball, hide-n-go-seek, and tag in the cul-de-sac where I lived as a very young child. I remember roaming acres of trees and streams playing Tarzan with my brother. I spent hours crawling through sewers, never wondering what small varmint could be crawling around in there!, or worry if someone was hiding out from the police. I could ride my bike all day with friends with free abandonment, knowing I just needed to be home by dinner. I felt no fear. My parents felt free to give my brothers and I free rein to explore and play.

Today schools are surrounded by gates. Security systems have been placed in many schools nationwide. Children can never go on a bike ride without their parents knowing exactly where they are at every moment. A child must be accompanied by an adult when trick-or-treating.  A child no longer has freedom to simply “be” a child. 

I’m hopeful that this won’t forever be the norm. That the current climate of fear and apprehension gives way to an air of optimism and freedom. A chance to let our children experience the world around them on their terms. Yes, safety is important, but today, there seems to be a thin line between protecting our kids and holding them back.