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Kiyomi Konagaya

こながや きよみ

Konagaya Kiyomi

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1936-02-16 （Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan）
Died
2017-11-26 age 81
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Shizuoka City (birthplace) → Tokyo (residence / literary activity)

Career

Occupations
Poet, University professor, Company employee (Dentsu)
Active Years
1960-2017
Affiliations
Modern Poets' Association, Atomi University (professor)
Memberships
Modern Poets' Association

Education

Shizuoka Prefectural Shizuoka High School
Period: 19??–1954
Year of Graduation: 1954
Country: Japan
Sophia University, Faculty of Letters, Department of English
Faculty of Letters / Department of English
Period: 1954–1958
Year of Graduation: 1958
Country: Japan
Became a contributor to the poetry magazine 'Han' while enrolled

Awards

H Prize (27th)
1977
Work: Shokoukai 26
Organization: H Prize Committee
Result: winner
Takami Jun Prize (21st)
1991
Work: Exuviae Hunting
Organization: Takami Jun Prize Committee
Result: winner
Modern Poet Prize (25th)
2007
Work: My Friend, the Mud Person
Organization: Modern Poet Prize Committee
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Shokoukai 26 (poetry collection)

1977 Poetry collection

A collection blending youthful sensibility and urban perspectives; one of his early representative works.

citytravelfragments of everyday life

Collected Poems of Kiyomi Konagaya

1985 Poetry collection (selected)

A selected volume published by Shichosha, compiling his poems to date.

recollectionexperimentation with language

Exuviae Hunting (poetry collection)

1989 Poetry collection

An introspective collection rich in symbolic imagery; known as the work that won the Takami Jun Prize.

lossrebirthbody and memory

My Friend, the Mud Person

2006 Poetry collection

A late-career important work depicting human relationships and friendship through images of mud and everyday life; recipient of the Modern Poet Prize.

friendshipcommunitypoetics of the everyday

Bibliography

  • The Beginning of Hope (poetry collection) — Shichosha, 1970
  • Shokoukai 26 (poetry collection) — 1976/1977
  • The Onion Runs (poetry collection) — Renga Shobou Shinsha, 1979
  • The Place That Smells of Naphthalene (poetry collection) — 1981
  • Scraps, Assemble (poetry collection) — 1983
  • Collected Poems of Kiyomi Konagaya — Shichosha, 1985
  • Worn-Out Cookies — Shichosha, 1986
  • Exuviae Hunting (poetry collection) — Shichosha, 1989
  • Tokyo, Here and There — Renga Shobou Shinsha, 1991
  • One Drop of Eye Drops! — Shoshi Yamada, 1994
  • Warashina, and Other Journeys — Shoshi Yamada, 1997
  • One Sunflower — Fukuinkan Shoten, 1998
  • My Friend, the Mud Person — Shoshi Yamada, 2006
  • Go Barefoot — Fukuinkan Shoten, 2014
  • Oh My! — Fukuinkan Shoten, 2016

Translations by Author

  • Benjamin's Box (translated; Alain Baker) — Kaiseisha, 1981

Style & Themes

Literary Style
lyrical and symbolic poetic styleplain expression interwoven with everyday languageimage-focused modernist techniques
Recurring Motifs
fragments of the citytravel and movementmateriality of everyday objects and mudfriendship and community

Legacy

A Japanese poet active from the late 20th to early 21st century. He incorporated urban sensibilities and everyday materials into his poetry, published numerous collections, and received awards such as the Takami Jun Prize and the Modern Poet Prize, earning recognition in contemporary poetry.

Academic Societies

  • Modern Poets' Association

Trivia

  • His daughter Yuki Konagaya was formerly an announcer at IBC Iwate Broadcasting.
  • His son-in-law is Tatsuya Aoshima, a Fuji TV announcer.
  • After graduating from Sophia University he worked at Dentsu.
  • He served as a professor at Atomi University.