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Fusao Shimizu

しみず ふさお

Shimizu Fusao

Aliases: 渡辺 弘一郎 / Watanabe Koichiro
Pen Names: Fusao Shimizu（Birth name Watanabe Koichiro; used Fusao Shimizu as a pen name for his tanka works.）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1915-08-07 （Chiba Prefecture, Japan）
Died
2017-03-03 age 101
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Kokura → Tsuchiura → Nishinomiya → Koyasan → Kurashiki (assigned to Naval Air Corps) → Tokyo (postwar: work/residence)

Career

Occupations
tanka poet, language teacher, university professor, editor
Active Years
1938-2017
Affiliations
Araragi (poetry magazine/sect), Yomiuri Kadan (judge/selector)
Influenced By
Kato Shuuson, Tsuchiya Fumiyo, Gomi Yasuyoshi

Education

Tokyo Bunrika University
Country: Japan
Contemporary of Kato Shuuson; university name is an older designation.

Awards

Modern Tanka Poets Association Award
1964
Work: Ichikyo-shu (collection)
Organization: Modern Tanka Poets Association
Result: winner
Tanka Kenkyu Prize
1977
Work: Haruno Tsuchi
Organization: Tanka Kenkyu (Research) Society
Result: winner
Japan Tanka Poets Club Prize
1990
Work: Kutsuma-sho
Organization: Japan Tanka Poets Club
Result: winner
Choko (Choko) Prize
1998
Work: Binten Kajin Gin
Organization: Choko Prize Committee
Result: winner
Gendai Tanka Grand Prize
1999
Work: Ro-mou Shouku / Saito Mokichi and Tsuchiya Fumiyo
Organization: Gendai Tanka Society
Result: winner
Saito Mokichi Tanka Literary Award
2004
Work: Dokuikisho Gin
Organization: Saito Mokichi Tanka Literature Award Committee
Result: winner
Shiika Bungakukan Prize (Poetry & Literature Museum Prize)
2008
Work: Isai Bigin
Organization: Poetry & Literature Museum
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Ichikyo-shu

1963 tanka

A collection of tanka reflecting postwar sensibilities, blending modern emotions with traditional expressions.

war and memorynatureaging

Mata Hibi

1971 tanka

A volume of tanka that calmly contemplates everyday life.

daily lifepassage of time

Tennan (collection)

1987 tanka

Contains mature-perspective tanka showing influence from kanshi and classical Chinese texts.

kanshi-influenced expressionrecollection

Binten Kajin Gin

1997 tanka

One of his notable later works, weaving tradition with personal reminiscence.

tradition and modernitypersonal reminiscence

Isai Bigin

2007 tanka

A late-career tanka collection characterized by calm diction and deep reminiscence.

agingrecollectionnature

Bibliography

  • Ichikyo-shu (collection)
  • Mata Hibi (collection)
  • Memoranda on the Best Poems of Nagatsuka Setsu
  • Tennan (collection)
  • Around Shiki's Kanshi
  • Binten Kajin Gin
  • Saito Mokichi and Tsuchiya Fumiyo
  • Rokuroku Sangin-shu (collection)
  • Isai Bigin (collection)
  • Nyokyu Kogin (selected tanka)
  • Sohro Tojo Gin
  • Zanyo Kogin
  • Zangin-sho

Style & Themes

Literary Style
a style that values traditional tanka formswell-composed expressions influenced by kanshi and classical Chinese literature
Recurring Motifs
war and memorydepictions of natureaging and recollection

Legacy

One of the leading postwar tanka poets, active for decades as a judge and educator. Praised for his erudition in kanshi and classical Chinese texts and his commitment to traditional forms.

Academic Societies

  • Modern Tanka Poets Association
  • Japan Tanka Poets Club

Archives

  • National Diet Library (authority and works data)

Trivia

  • Died in 2017 at the age of 101; regarded as a centenarian tanka poet in Japan.
  • Served as a judge/selector and was once a 'shounin' (imperial poetry gathering appointee) for the Imperial New Year Poetry Reading (Utakai Hajime).