Okuyama Gihachirō (1907–1981) was a shin-hanga and sōsaku-hanga artist who produced over 1000 works during his lifetime. He is most well-known for his landscapes, three examples of which we have in this small group of prints.

In the mimeographed letter from Okuyama, dated 1948, that accompanies this group of prints, he talks about "Akatsuki no Kawaguchiko" ("Dawn at Lake Kawaguchi"), a print which is unfortunately not included in our set. Nevertheless what he writes is interesting - he emphasises the importance of both sōsaku-hanga and traditional printmaking techniques and briefly describes the discussion between the followers of the two techniques on which method of printmaking is better. He mentions that, while he himself carved most of the woodblocks for the colours of the aforementioned print, a traditional carver carved the other blocks. Perhaps he produced our three prints in a similar way, blending traditional and modern techniques to create a peaceful compromise between the styles...