Page 168 - 2021 March 16th Japanese and Korean Art, Christie's New York City

This set of three erotic books, first printed in 1814, is
considered one of the best examples of shunga. Each
volume contains 30 pages, starting with an okubi-e of a
courtesan, rarely-seen among Hokusai's creations, followed
by 7 double-pages of erotic scenes and concludes with a
close-up depiction of genitalia.

Among these intense illustrations, the most well-known
and ubiquitous image is Tako to ama (Octopus and Shell
Diver). This image astounded western audiences upon
its introduction to France in the late 19th century. People
initially read the picture, without comprehending the
accompanying text, as the octopi intertwined with a corpse
laying among rocks. In Western mythologies, the octopus
is sometimes regarded as an evil figure from the terrifying
ocean, like the Kraken from Scandinavian folklore. Thus,
this image was interpreted as a demonstration of sexual
pleasure associated with the terror of death. The text as
well as the girl's hand grasping the tentacle, however,
suggest the diver being fully conscious and purely enjoying
the ecstasy.
Other illustrations in the books also convey deep human lust
regardless of gender and ethics. One such image depicts a
violent scene in which a rice maker intends to rape a young
girl. The perpetrator is portrayed as an ugly and filthy figure
who could not arouse any joy to viewers. Nonetheless, the
picture is so vivid that the strong and primitive desire the
figure carries delivers to viewers firmitively before they
make any moral judgement. The books manifest Hokusai's
fertile imagination as well as the almost primal cultural
atmosphere during the Edo Period. It was not until late
19th century when the Meiji government introduced and
adopted the modern value – in other terms, the Western
values – that the Edo culture, which impacted many great
Japanese artists like Hokusai, started to diminish.