Under the Great Wave by Hokusai  -1829 - The British Museum, London

This is one of the most famous works of art ever created. We see it all the time in posters, t-shirts and adverts. That sometimes means we need to look even more closely than usual as we think we know what we are looking at. What is about to happen? A huge wave is about to land on top of three boats in the waters off Japan with Mount Fuji in the background. Does this look a normal wave? It is a bit like a cartoon or comic. The ends of it are like a monster’s claws or fingers. Have another look at the artwork. Are the people on the boats screaming and panicking? They are actually curled into a ball in the brace position. They know that if they hold on tight they will survive! They will get wet of course but they will come out the other side. Instead of being a scary image that we thought at first this one is actually showing us how to stay safe and calm in the face of danger.

 

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