Description
Katsushika Hokusai, one of the most revered masters of ukiyo-e, continues to dazzle the art world with his mastery of printmaking and painting. His work "Salted Salmon and Mice" represents a moment of singular interest in his work, where the everyday meets the unusual. In this work, Hokusai presents us with a seemingly simple scene but full of symbolism and nuance. The painting shows a red mullet, with its skin partially dried and prepared for preservation, lying on a cloth. A group of mice, creatures at once endearing and repulsive, crowd around the lower part of the composition, generating a tension between the appetizing and the grotesque.
The colour palette used is characteristic of Hokusai’s sensitivity to the nuances of nature and everyday life. The warm tones of the salmon contrast with the cold gaze of the mice, which are depicted with subtle detail in their fur. This use of colour is not merely decorative; it creates an atmosphere that invites the viewer to contemplate the duality of the attractive and the repulsive, a recurring theme in Japanese art. By employing this chromatic contrast, Hokusai not only illustrates a moment of everyday life, but also evokes a deeper reflection on the struggle for survival in nature and the basic instincts that drive us.
Compositionally, Hokusai displays his skill in balancing the elements on the canvas. The salmon occupies the centre of the image, a dominant position that gives it an almost heroic character, while the mice, smaller and more numerous, are grouped at the bottom, suggesting movement and urgency around the fish. This arrangement can also be interpreted as a representation of the natural hierarchy, where what appears to be an object of desire becomes the stage for a biological drama in which the smaller ones try to take advantage of the spoils of the larger one.
Interestingly, “Salted Salmon and Mice” can be viewed through the lens of Japanese food culture, where salmon played a crucial role in local diets and traditions. Hokusai, whose work often draws on everyday customs and settings, manages in this painting to capture an instant in which art, culture and life converge. The choice to include mice, which can traditionally symbolize both greed and abundance, adds an additional layer of analysis on how these themes permeate human existence.
Through his unique style and ability to fuse visual narratives with a deep sense of reflection, Hokusai has managed to make this work resonate beyond its time. "Salted Salmon and Mice" is a clear example of how Japanese art of the Edo period was not limited to simply depicting valleys and landscapes, but also explored the complexity of life in its entirety, mixing sensorial pleasure with the restlessness of an existence full of danger and, at the same time, beauty. Thus, Hokusai, with his restless gaze and his unparalleled mastery, invites us to contemplate not only what we see, but also what we feel when observing the world around us.
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