Hokusai and Viollet-le-Duc: Eurasian Roots of Design Aesthetics

Abstract

Although the idea of ＂fine arts＂ or ＂beaux-arts＂ certainly originated in Europe, the ideas of ＂art＂ or ＂arts＂ had already existed in Asia since antiquity or no later than the middle ages. Above all, such elitist terms as ＂beaux-arts＂ or ＂fine arts＂ is a kind of modern concept formulated in the 18th century. Eugene-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1879), an architect, theoretician, and major critic of ＂academic＂ fine-arts education in France and the Ecole des beaux-arts of Paris, equally appreciated the artistic talent of Italian Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) and Japanese master of printmaking Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) in his last publication ＂Histoire d’un dessinateur＂ (History of a designer) published in Paris in 1879. Hokusai is now world-famous as the artist of some celebrated ukiyo-e prints such as ＂Great Wave off Kanagawa or Red Fuji＂. He was most influential and well-known in 19th-century Europe, however, for his series of ＂Hokusai manga＂, 15 volumes sketches published between 1814 and 1878, the last volumes being posthumously published in Tokyo, a year before the publication of the ＂Histoire d'un dessinateur＂. ＂Hokusai manga＂ means a ＂random collection of Hokusai's drawings＂ rather than a collection of ＂cartoons＂ or ＂comics＂ by Hokusai. It was a veritable encyclopedia of Japanese life and landscape by a versatile Asian artist and designer with whom another all-round European designer Viollet-lu-Duc must have immediately identified himself. His last publication ＂Histoire d’un dessinateur＂, perhaps inspired by the ＂Hokusai manga＂ and a very rare book which used the term ＂dessinateur＂ (designer) in France, was a kind of the last words of Viollet-le-Duc who fought against ＂academic＂ teaching of ＂fine-arts＂ throughout his lifetime for more rational, un-academic, and democratic ＂arts,＂ while worrying about the outdated ＂design＂ education in France.