Bungei Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 20 (1983) award
Koji Wakaichi
わかいち こうじ
Wakaichi Koji
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1950-10-16 （Toyonaka, Osaka, Japan）
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Toyonaka, Osaka, Japan
Career
- Occupations
- Writer, Painter, TV Commentator, Copywriter, Commercial Director, Founder/Creative Director
- Active Years
- 1969-
- Affiliations
- Japan Writers' Association
- Memberships
- Japan Writers' Association
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Osaka City Kogei High School | Art Department | — | — | — | Japan |
Osaka City Kogei High School
Art Department
Year of Graduation:
1969
Country:
Japan
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Bungei Prize | Layering Night on the Sea | — | Bungei Prize Selection Committee | 受賞 |
| 1986 | Sakuya Konohana Prize | — | — | Sakuya Konohana Prize Committee | 受賞 |
| 2003 | Doyusha Prize (Tenri Biennale) | — | — | Tenri Biennale Organizing Committee | 受賞 |
| 2003 | Sakaide Art Grand Prix - Honorable Mention | — | — | Sakaide Art Grand Prix Committee | 佳作 |
| 2003 | Prints 21 Grand Prix - New Japan Forming Award | — | — | Prints 21 Grand Prix Committee | 受賞 |
| 2003 | River Painting Grand Prize - Honorable Mention | — | — | River Painting Grand Prize Committee | 佳作 |
Bungei Prize
1983
Work:
Layering Night on the Sea
Organization:
Bungei Prize Selection Committee
Result:
受賞
Sakuya Konohana Prize
1986
Organization:
Sakuya Konohana Prize Committee
Result:
受賞
Doyusha Prize (Tenri Biennale)
2003
Organization:
Tenri Biennale Organizing Committee
Result:
受賞
Sakaide Art Grand Prix - Honorable Mention
2003
Organization:
Sakaide Art Grand Prix Committee
Result:
佳作
Prints 21 Grand Prix - New Japan Forming Award
2003
Organization:
Prints 21 Grand Prix Committee
Result:
受賞
River Painting Grand Prize - Honorable Mention
2003
Organization:
River Painting Grand Prize Committee
Result:
佳作
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Layering Night on the Sea
1984 NovelA novel depicting the love between a stripper and a young man with intellectual disabilities.
LoveDisabilityHuman rightsSociety
Adaptations
- [Film] Make-Up / 中原俊
Drifting Light
1984 NovelAn early work blending surreal descriptions with urban landscapes; categorized as a short-story collection or novel.
CityMemorySurrealism
The Suicidal
1998 Non-fictionA non-fiction work compiling reports and testimonies about people who committed suicide.
SuicideSocial historyDocumentary
Walking the Origins of Osaka Place Names
2008 Non-fictionAn essay/non-fiction tracing the origins and history of Osaka place names.
Local historyPlace namesLocal character
Poisoner
2016 NovelA novel that deals with murders by poisoning, blending mystery and social commentary.
CrimeJusticeMorality
Bibliography
- Layering Night on the Sea
- Drifting Light
- Enjoyable Fossil Collecting: Guide to Fossil Sites in the Kinki Region
- The Last War Casualty: Private First Class Kinzoku Kozuka
- In the City Backlit: Documentary Essays
- The Joy of Fossils: Beloved Ancient Creatures
- In a City Where Asia Meets
- The Ring of Peragra
- I, In the Name of the Suicides: 104 Postwar Showa-era Persons
- Endless Mind: My Heart Is Always Trembling
- Stones Speak, Dinosaurs Awaken
- Flowers Laid on Route 1
- On the Day the Kaleidoscope Broke
- Suicides of the 20th Century: 130 Era Testimonies
- New Year's Cards from the Dead: Essay Collection
- The Day Osaka Could Have Been the Capital: The Meiji Restoration and Relocation Debate
- Pilgrimage to Lake Biwa
- The Suicidal (Gentosha Outlaw Bunko)
- The Age of Suicides
- Extraordinary Passionates of the 20th Century
- Walking the Origins of Osaka Place Names
- Visiting the Mysteries and History of Osaka Place Names
- One Hundred Scenes of the Four Seasons: Travel Sentiments
- Walking the Mysteries and Wonders of Osaka and Kansai
- Poisoner
Adaptations
- Layering Night on the Sea → Make-Up (film directed by Toshio Nakahara)
Translations by Author
- The Arabs in Israel (Sabri Jiris, co-translated)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Combines nonfictional social-issue reporting with novelistic descriptionWriting often has elements of local history and reportage
- Recurring Motifs
- Human rightsDeath and suicideCitiesFossilsEncounters with Asia
Legacy
Active as a writer, painter and TV commentator, he is known for works addressing human rights and local culture. Winning the Bungei Prize in 1983 catalyzed his literary career; he later gained recognition in the visual arts with several prizes in the 2000s.
Academic Societies
- Japan Writers' Association
In Popular Culture
- Widely recognized for long-term appearances on television programs
Quotes
-
The way of asking 'Is it male or female?' is an unforgivable lack of human-rights sense. One should not intrude on an individual's sexuality in that manner.
Source: Kansai Joho Net ten. (Yomiuri TV) (2019) -
Mayor Hashimoto's claims are about ninety percent correct. ...(Mr. Sano's writing) contains language that fosters discrimination.
Source: Comment on a Yomiuri TV program and subsequent newspaper coverage (2012)
Trivia
- Held solo art exhibitions while still in high school
- Repeated one year in high school before graduation
- The 1983 Bungei Prize-winning work was adapted into a film ('Make-Up')