Japanese Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Mutsuo Takano

たかの ムツオ

Takano Mutsuo

Pen Names: Mutsuo Takano (real name)（Legal/birth name）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1947-07-14 （Iwagasaki (now Kurihara), Miyagi Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Tagajō, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan (residence)

Career

Occupations
haiku poet, junior high school teacher, editor, judge (literary)
Active Years
1960-
Affiliations
Kairo (haiku group), Kogumaza (editor/leader), Modern Haiku Association (chair), Museum of Modern Japanese Poetry and Poetics (director)
Memberships
Japan PEN Club (member), Modern Haiku Association
Influenced By
Tota Kaneko, Kibō Satō (Satō Kibō), Midori Onna Abe

Education

Kokugakuin University
Faculty of Letters, Department of Literature / Department of Literature
Country: Japan

Awards

Kairo Newcomer Prize (Honorable Mention)
1972
Organization: Kairo (haiku group)
Result: 受賞
Kairo Prize (24th)
1988
Organization: Kairo
Result: 受賞
Miyagi Prefecture Arts Award
1994
Organization: Miyagi Prefecture
Result: 受賞
Modern Haiku Association Award (44th)
1994
Organization: Modern Haiku Association
Result: 受賞
Yomiuri Literature Prize (Poetry/Haiku category, 65th)
2013
Work: Man no Hane (Wings of Myriad)
Category: 詩歌俳句賞
Organization: Yomiuri Shimbun
Result: 受賞
Ono City Poetry and Literature Prize (6th)
2013
Work: Man no Hane (Wings of Myriad)
Organization: Ono City
Result: 受賞
Jakko Prize (48th)
2013
Work: Man no Hane (Wings of Myriad)
Organization: Jakko Prize Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

House of Heat Haze

1987 haiku

First haiku collection, notable for sensitive use of seasonal words and youthful perspective.

seasonseveryday life

Crow Pillars

1993 haiku

Mid-career collection with deepening sombre tones and attentive observations of nature.

natureambiguity

The Blood of the Skylark

1996 haiku

1990s collection featuring lyrical motifs and regional elements.

localitylyricism

King of Insects

2003 haiku

Collection combining elements of the fantastic with keen observation.

life and deathnature observation

Wings of Myriad (Man no Hane)

2013 haiku

Haiku collection that includes many poems responding to the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake; recurring images of death, memorial flowers, and mourning.

disaster/earthquakemourningloss

Single Wing

2016 haiku

Recent collection marked by intensified introspection.

introspectionmemory

Haiku That Tell Life: The Gaze After 3/11

2018 criticism/essays

Essays discussing haiku and expression after the 3/11 earthquake.

disaster poetryliterary criticism

Appreciation: The Time-Space of Kigo

2020 criticism

Work analyzing the meanings and spatiotemporal functions of kigo (seasonal words).

seasonal wordshaiku theory

That Moment — When Haiku Are Born

2021 criticism / photo collaboration

Book capturing moments of haiku creation paired with photographs.

creationmoment

Bibliography

  • House of Heat Haze (1987)
  • Crow Pillars (1993)
  • The Blood of the Skylark (1996)
  • King of Insects (2003)
  • Collected Works of Mutsuo Takano (2007)
  • Wings of Myriad (2013)
  • Single Wing (2016)
  • Haiku That Tell Life: The Gaze After 3/11 (2018)
  • Appreciation: The Time-Space of Kigo (2020)
  • That Moment — When Haiku Are Born (2021)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
realistic yet lyrical use of seasonal words (kigo)concise construction of sharp imagery
Recurring Motifs
seasonsloss and mourningclose observation of nature

Health

  • laryngeal cancer
    2007
    Underwent surgery in 2007; the experience affected his life and later poetic work.

Legacy

Recognized for haiku addressing the 2011 disaster, Takano is a prominent contemporary haiku poet who has contributed to the field as a judge and organizational leader.

Academic Societies

  • Modern Haiku Association
  • Museum of Modern Japanese Poetry and Poetics

Archives

  • Holdings at the Museum of Modern Japanese Poetry and Poetics

Quotes

  • In Michinoku this year all the cherry blossoms are offerings
    Source: Man no Hane (Wings of Myriad) (haiku collection) (2013)

Trivia

  • At age 10 one of his submissions was selected by Midori Onna Abe.
  • He was the first postwar-born recipient of the Jakko Prize.