Began study of painting with his father in Akita Ranga style, but upon his father's death, resumed study with his father's studio head. In 1894, moved to Kyoto to study Shijo style painting with Kawabata Gyokusho becoming his direct apprentice. In 1897, Hirafuku entered Tokyo School of Fine Arts, where he graduated from the painting course in 1899. In 1900 he joined Museikai, a group of artists practicing historical painting in Romantic style for figural work and naturalistic painting (shaseiga) for landscape and bird and flower painting. In 1907 he went to work for Kokumin Shinbun, the newspaper, then in 1908 contributed to Ishii Hakutei's "Hosun" journal, becoming its editor. He began exhibiting in the national domestic exhibitions Bunten and Teiten from 1909. In 1916, Hyakusui established the Kinreisha group of artists and also joined a group interested in Han stele-style pictorial art. He was also active in the poetry group Araragi with Kaburagi Kiyokata, Kikkawa Reika, and Matsuoka Eikyu. From 1915-1924, Hirafuku exhibited with the Sengo (coral) group, including Kawabata Ryushi, Ogawa Senyo, and Ogawa Usen. His mature work was in a Rinpa-influenced style, but late in his career he turned to Nanga in Ming/Qing style. In 1930, Hirafuku traveled to Europe, and in the same year joined became an Imperial artist (Teikoku bijutsu'in kai'in). He began teaching at Tokyo School of the Arts in 1932, painting a number of his best known masterworks in his last year of life.