$500–$4,000. Common prints: $500–$1,500. Key value factors: Hanko's refined nihonga-style prints bridge traditional painting and modern printmaking. His early death at 47 limits available works.
A surprised bijin — a woman caught in a moment of unguarded reaction, her composure disrupted by something unexpected. In bijin-ga, surprise is a relatively rare emotional register, most figures presenting a controlled, composed exterior; the surprised bijin creates a moment of psychological disclosure, a crack in the decorous surface that reveals the woman's inner life. Hanko's mastery of subtle facial expression would have made this subject a vehicle for his most refined characterization, capturing the precise quality of startled recognition.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Surprised Bijin was created by Kajita Hanko (梶田半古).
Surprised Bijin depicts bijin-ga.
![Untitled [Two women] by Kajita Hanko](https://1.api.artsmia.org/800/135758.jpg)
