Pioneer of graphic design in Japan. In 1901, he graduated from the Japanese-style painting department of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts. The Art Nouveau style was introduced by Kuroda Seiki from the Paris World Expo, and Hisui was inspired by it to try and pioneer a new field of design. He became a part-timer at the Mitsukoshi Gofukuten from 1925 and designed all publicity posters and magazine covers for the store. In 1925, he formed a group making a study of posters, Shichinin-sha. Since the establishment of Tama Teikoku Bijutsu Gakko (currently, Tama Art University) in 1935, he served as its principal and the professor of the design department. He was awarded the Imperial Award of the Japan Academy of Arts in 1955.