Hokusai Manga

　　葛飾北齋（1760-1849），日本江戶時代的浮世繪畫家與版畫家，是聞名全球的日本藝術家。葛飾北齋出生於東京，最著名的作品是《冨嶽三十六景》，其中〈凱風快晴〉與〈神奈川衝浪裏〉兩畫，更是成為日本浮世繪的代名詞。

　　1814年，葛飾北齋54歲時出版了他的知名作品《Hokusai Manga》（北齋漫畫），內有4,000多幅圖，內容包括市井百態、山水鳥獸、鬼臉妖怪等，一舉成為當時的暢銷書。現在在這次全新出版的三冊裝幀中，廣泛搜羅葛飾北齋作品，展示葛飾北齋筆下的主題、圖畫內容與繪畫技巧。

　　《Hokusai Manga》第一冊以生活為主題，探討江戶時期人物的日常生活習慣、建築特徵、人物表情與姿態等。第二冊則是以自然界為主題，描繪動物、魚類、岩石等自然百態。第三冊聚焦超自然主題，包括神話、幻想等超自然或幻想生物。

　　In 1814, Hokusai’s sketches were published in a handbook of over 4,000 images: Hokusai Manga. It surpassed expectations as a student reference book, and became a bestseller. Here, in an elegant, three-volume package, an expansive selection of these works are revealed, presenting all of the themes, motifs and drawing techniques found in his art. The caricatures, satirical drawings, multi-panel illustrations and narrative depictions found in the book can clearly be seen as the basis for manga as it is understood today. One volume explores The Life and Manners of the Day (studying habits and objects of the everyday, from architectural features to wrestling moves and facial expressions); the second The Whole Earth Catalogue (largely concerned with nature, from animals to rock faces and fish); and the third presents the Fanciful, Mythical and Supernatural (with images narrating myths and displaying fantastical creatures).