diving without analogy

O'er the wide, wide sea, Towards its many dis- tant isles, Rowing I set forth. This, to all the world pro- claim, O ye boats of fisher-folk!

The place is the south end of the Izu Pen- insula, southwest of the Tokyo area.

The women are Ama--diving girls who are trained to dive into shallow water and reef areas and retrieve shellfish and other marine life used in gour- met seafood meals. It was a hard and dangerous occupation, and the girls used no special

equipment. Most of them worked for a labor boss, who took a cut of their wages. The occupation gradually van- ished after the war--these were among the last of the tribe. 1

the prints clearly make it seem more romantic. called both divers of abalone and pearls, the women are pictured as long-haired and red-skirted, often joyous in their explo- rations, with their families around them. they are, further, of great interest to royal parties and boats of leering fishermen as well.

utamaro featured them the most often -- not really surprisingly



since he spent the rest of his time exploring the women of the pleasure district, both on paper and personally. it was the death of him, in a roundabout way.



Hokusai tells us that the longing for the spiritual security of home is stronger than any sensual temptation - including that of beautiful girls. The three girls on the top of the rock are a tribute to Kitagawa Utamaro's famous woodblock from 1798 with "the same three girls". Hokusai made his woodblock about 50 years later. 2