Hokkei

Totoya Hokkei (1780–1850) was a Japanese artist known above all for his ukiyo-e prints. Born in Edo, present-day Tokyo, under the name Iwakubo Tatsuyuki, he first worked as a fishmonger before studying in the Kanō school of painting and later becoming one of the first pupils of Katsushika Hokusai.

His earliest known works, from about 1800, are book illustrations for kyōka comic verse, sharebon novels and hanashibon storybooks. His most productive period came in the 1820s and 1830s, when he made a large number of prints, especially surimono, and book illustrations. His style is light and simple and versatile, ranging from the tradition of Hishikawa Moronobu to Western-influenced approaches. Notable works include his illustrations for Ishikawa Masamochi's comic novel Hokuri Jūniji and the fifteen-print series Famous Places from Various Provinces of 1835–36.

Hokkei died in 1850 at the age of seventy. His legacy lies in his contribution to ukiyo-e printmaking and in his students, among them Yashima Gakutei.