Itô Kennosuke was born in Yokka-ichi, in Mie prefecture. When Ujiyama Teppei (1910-1986), printmaker and painter, moved to Fukuoka in 1934 the two artists met and Ujiyama Teppei taught Itô Kennosuke woodblock printing. He exhibited with the Zôkei Hanga Kyôkai and with the Kokugakai from 1940 on. He was a member of the Nihon Hanga Kyôkai between 1952 and 1960.
