Key value factors: As self-carved and self-printed works, sosaku-hanga value is tied to the artist's reputation and edition size. Larger formats, earlier editions, and historically significant works command the highest prices.
A waterfall composition by Aoyama Masaharu — a subject with a long lineage in Japanese landscape art, from the ink paintings of the Muromachi period through the [ukiyo-e](/glossary/ukiyo-e) waterfall prints of the Edo era. Aoyama's treatment of the waterfall reflects his grounding in traditional Japanese painting techniques: the water is rendered with attention to its dynamic movement, its foam and mist, and its relationship to the rocky landscape through which it falls. The 1950s date situates this work in the period of his mature [sosaku-hanga](/glossary/sosaku-hanga) practice, when his technical mastery — praised by scholars for its exceptional carving, printing, and design — was fully developed.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Waterfall was created by Aoyama Masaharu (青山正治) in 1950s.
Waterfall depicts landscapes, waterfalls, and rivers & lakes.
