# Kyosai artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/kyosai/
Profile generated: 2026-05-12T18:56:28.712Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Death date: 1850-05-20
- Nationality: Japanese
- Movements: Ukiyo-e
- Common media: woodblock prints, paintings, book illustrations

## About Kyosai

Totoya Hokkei (1780–1850) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist active in Edo (modern Tokyo). Recognized as one of Katsushika Hokusai's earliest and most accomplished pupils, Hokkei developed a versatile practice spanning woodblock prints, paintings, and book illustrations. He worked across a range of genres and produced a substantial body of work that reflects the breadth of late-Edo visual culture. Hokkei used several art names over his career, including Aoigazono, Aoigaoka, and Kyōsai (拱斎). Collectors encountering his work today most often see single-sheet prints and illustrated books that carry the refined line work and compositional inventiveness characteristic of the Hokusai studio. His landscapes and depictions of animals are among the subjects most frequently represented in museum and auction contexts.

## Common works and media

Common works by Hokkei include single-sheet woodblock prints (surimono and nishiki-e), illustrated book pages, and paintings. His subjects range from landscapes to animal studies and genre scenes. Collectors may encounter his work both as individual prints and as bound book illustrations. Works signed with his Kyōsai (拱斎) art name require careful differentiation from prints by Kawanabe Kyōsai.

## Market and appraisal context

Hokkei's prints appear in the Japanese woodblock market alongside other Hokusai-school artists. Key factors affecting appraisal include the quality of the impression, condition of the paper and colors, the subject depicted, and whether the work is a single-sheet print or part of a book illustration. Provenance linking a work to the Hokusai atelier tradition can add contextual value. Importantly, Hokkei's art name Kyōsai (拱斎) is easily confused with Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831–1889), a separate and more widely known artist. Correct attribution is critical for accurate valuation and should be confirmed through signature analysis, date, and style.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine artist identity research from library authorities, museum records, and scholarly sources with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. For this artist, identity data is drawn from Getty ULAN, VIAF, RKD, Wikidata, and published biographical references.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11673960
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hokkei
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500327126
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/3173405/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/nr2002018804
- RKD - Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/291064