奥山儀八郎 Gihachiro Okuyama (1907-1981)

Bridging Tradition and Modernity: The Woodblock Prints of Gihachiro Okuyama

Gihachiro Okuyama (1907–1981) navigated two seemingly divergent movements in twentieth-century Japanese printmaking. Mentored by Kosaka Gajin, he embraced the self-carved spirit of sōsaku-hanga (創作版画) and, by 1927, was exhibiting with the Nihon Sōsaku-Hanga Kyōkai, winning its top prize the next year. Economic pressures after 1929 steered him into commercial woodblock posters for Japan Wool Textile and Nikka Whisky, honing a bold graphic style.

Seeking deeper roots, Okuyama studied ukiyo-e technique with Ishii Kendō and adopted the collaborative shin-hanga (新版画) hanmoto system, adding strong perspective, rich colour, and appreciation of light/shadow to his work. The result is a dual catalogue: vivid shin-hanga colour prints and stark black-and-white sōsaku editions, the latter carved, printed, and signed by his own hand. Collectors can encounter both smaller & unsigned runs alongside larger pencil-signed versions – clear proof of a maker tailoring format to market.

Wartime shortages drew him into the Nihon Hanga Hōkokai, and in 1942 he co-founded the Shin-hanga Kyōkai with Azechi Umetarō and Takayama Uichi. Post-war he pivoted to revival: in 1946 he opened the Nihon Hanga Kenkyūsho (Japan Print Institute), issuing new designs, & homages to Hiroshige views, and masterful woodblocks which honoured Vincent van Gogh and post-Impressionist masters. From 1954 his Matsudo studio, Okuyama Hanga Kōbō, balanced fresh work with meticulous homages until his death on 1 October 1981. His son, Okuyama Gijin, continues the workshop today.

Okuyama’s career proves that Japanese woodblock can thrive in two modes at once – the independent drive of sōsaku-hanga and the collaborative polish of shin-hanga – extending a line that runs from Edo masters through Hiroshige to Western modernists like Van Gogh.