The Waterwheel at Onden
c. 1830–1832 · Woodblock print; ink and color on paper · The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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This print
About this work
- Artist
- Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849)
- Year
- c. 1830–1832
- Medium
- Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
- Original size
- 26 × 38.7 cm
- Collection
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (impression JP2967; many other impressions exist)
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
A large waterwheel turns beside a thatched mill at the left, water spilling from its paddles in curling blue waves, while country people carry sacks and buckets and a woman washes in the stream. Across the fields, a white Fuji rises in the distance. The print belongs to Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, published around 1830–1832 by Nishimuraya Yohachi (Eijudō). Onden was a village on the outskirts of Edo, where a stream turned a mill wheel for grinding grain. Hokusai delights in the stylised water, almost like clawed fingers pouring off the wheel; impressions vary in colour and condition.
This full-bleed edition prints the work edge to edge from a high-resolution scan of the original, very slightly cropped (a few percent at most) to fit the sheet. The gallery edition shows the whole work, uncropped. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
Soft greens and yellows with curling blue water, for a kitchen, family room or child's room at 24×16 in natural wood. It pairs with Fuji from the Katakura Tea Fields in Suruga for two scenes of country work.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (c. 1830–1832)
- Orientation
- Landscape
- Palette
- cornflower blue
- Mood
- calm
- Rooms
- kitchen, kids room, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, travelers, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 24×16. Prints at 18×12, 24×16 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard.
Framing. Printed edge to edge: a slim black or natural wood frame right to the image, or let the canvas wrap do the framing.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is The Waterwheel at Onden in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was The Waterwheel at Onden painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
An exhibition poster
The same artwork as a gallery exhibition poster — title, artist & date typeset beneath the image on a soft ground.
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
