Woman with a Firefly Cage
- Date:
- designed: 1920 (Taishō 9), July, printed: c. 1950 (Shōwa 25)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print; ink on paper
- Format:
- Oban
- Dimensions:
- 46.1 × 29.2 cm
Goyo completed only 14 woodblock print designs before his death in 1921, making every genuine impression extraordinarily rare. His bijin-ga are among the most refined of the entire shin-hanga movement. "Woman at the Bath" achieved $40,075 at Bonhams New York in 2020; Sotheby's estimates of $15,000–$25,000 are typical for top examples.
A woman with a firefly cage — "hotaru kago" — designed in July 1920 and printed circa 1950, one of Goyo's summer bijin compositions pairing feminine beauty with the luminous insects that made Japanese summer evenings magical. The firefly cage (a delicate wire or bamboo construction holding live fireflies) was both a summer toy and an aesthetic object, its inhabitants' pulsing light making it a miniature lantern of living origin. Goyo's bijin holding the cage has the quality of composed summer pleasure, the warmth of the season rendered through posture and accessory rather than through explicit seasonal imagery.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Woman with a Firefly Cage was created by Hashiguchi Goyo (橋口五葉) in designed: 1920 (Taishō 9), July, printed: c. 1950 (Shōwa 25).
Woman with a Firefly Cage was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (designed: 1920 (Taishō 9), July, printed: c. 1950 (Shōwa 25)).
Woman with a Firefly Cage depicts bijin-ga and insects.
Woman with a Firefly Cage measures 46.1 × 29.2 cm (Oban format).
