$500–$4,000. Common prints: $500–$1,500. Key value factors: As an early sosaku-hanga champion, Nagase's prints have historical significance. Bold, expressive woodcuts are most valued.
A trapeze artist and an animal tamer share the ring in this woodblock print, numbered eleven of twenty in what appears to be a circus-themed series. The aerial performer and the ground-level handler represent two poles of circus spectacle: gravity-defying human agility above and primal human-animal confrontation below. Nagase captures the visual drama of the big top, where spotlights, costumes, and the circular performance space create a compressed theatrical world. The edition numbering (11/20) confirms this as a limited-run print, and its position mid-series suggests a systematic documentation of circus acts that gave Nagase material for exploring movement, danger, and showmanship.
Hebizukai
1932
Color woodblock print; oban
1935
Color woodblock print; oban
1964
Acrylic paint and oil pastel with oiled charcoal and ink over an ink and graphite underdrawing on paper
1964
Color lithograph with relief block and hand coloring; edition 35/36
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Circus - Trapeze and animal tamer. (11/20) was created by Nagase Yoshio (永瀬義郎).
Circus - Trapeze and animal tamer. (11/20) depicts animals.
