The Great Wave Off Kanagawa belongs to which art period?

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa belongs to which art period?

• A. Edo period
• B. Renaissance
• C. Baroque
• D. Romanticism

Answer: (A)

This work is from the Edo period in Japan, created around 1830–1833 by Hokusai as part of the ukiyo-e woodblock print tradition. The Edo period (roughly 1603–1868) was when these affordable, visually bold landscapes and everyday scenes flourished for a growing urban audience. The Great Wave Off Kanagawa showcases that style with strong outlines, flat fields of color, and a dramatic portrayal of nature, with Mount Fuji appearing in the distance. The other options are European movements from different times and places—Renaissance and Baroque earlier in history, and Romanticism as a later European reaction to nature and emotion—so they don’t fit the cultural and historical context of this Japanese print.

This work is from the Edo period in Japan, created around 1830–1833 by Hokusai as part of the ukiyo-e woodblock print tradition. The Edo period (roughly 1603–1868) was when these affordable, visually bold landscapes and everyday scenes flourished for a growing urban audience. The Great Wave Off Kanagawa showcases that style with strong outlines, flat fields of color, and a dramatic portrayal of nature, with Mount Fuji appearing in the distance. The other options are European movements from different times and places—Renaissance and Baroque earlier in history, and Romanticism as a later European reaction to nature and emotion—so they don’t fit the cultural and historical context of this Japanese print.