On the Waves at Kakuda on the way to Sado
| Support Type: | Paper |
| Paint Type: | Ink |
| Current Location: | The National Museum of Asian Art, Arthur M. Sackler Collection, accession number S2004.3.162. |
| Location History: | The work belonged to Anne van Biema of New York, who was its previous owner. in 2004, it entered the National Museum of Asian Art as a gift from Anna van Biema. Now it is in Arthur M. Sackler Collection, accession number S2004.3.162. |
Utagawa Kuniyoshi's On the Waves at Kakuda on the Way to Sado is a colour woodblock print dating to around 1835, belonging to the series Concise Illustrated Biography of monk Nichiren. The work depicts the Buddhist monk Nichiren during his journey into exile on Sado Island. Caught in a violent storm at sea, Nichiren stand in a boat amid enormous waves and invokes the title of the Lotus Sutra, 'Namu Myoho Renge Kyo' and miraculously calmed the sea. The inscription appearing in black across the waves. The composition is dominated by the sea. Kuniyoshi fills the image with large, curling waves that rise around a small boat. The scale of the waves makes the human figures appear physically vulnerable. The boat seems to be carried almost entirely by the movement of the water, creating an intense sense of instability. At the centre of this turbulent environment stands Nichiren, identifiable through his clerical robes and religious presence. His figure provides a vertical counterpoint to the horizontal movement of the sea. While the boat and waves move laterally and diagonally across the composition, Nichiren remains comparatively stable. The inscription is integrated directly into the water. The written word is given almost the same visual presence as the natural elements of the composition. The series consists of ten scenes from the life of Nichiren and was published around in 1835 by Iseya Rihei.