Ogata Gekko worked as a painter, printmaker and decorator of lacquerware and pottery. He was a founding member of the Bunten (Ministry of Education Art Exhibitions, starting in 1907). Genre scenes from everyday life were his most common subjects. He produced a considerable number of war prints during and after the Sino-Japanese war. His print style is more reminiscent of paintings then traditional woodblocks and his designs required great skill of the carvers and printers who executed them.