The judging panel for the ITO EN Oi Ocha Shinhaiku Contest will consist of judges from various fields of art, including haiku, photography, literature, music and theater.
The judges will seek works that demonstrate free and fresh aesthetics as well as beautiful expressions.
Studied English literature at Colgate University, USA. With his graduation in 1990, at once he moved to Japan and started to write poems in Japanese. His poem collection “Tsuriagetewa” won the Chuya Nakahara Prize, and “Nihongo Pokori Pokori” won the Kodansha Essay Award. In 2017 he received an honorable mention as part of the Waseda University Tsubouchi Shoyo Award.
Representative of the society “Ten”, Honorary Professor of Waseda University, and advisor to the Association of Haiku Poets. He has published a series of haiku collections, including the titles “Rendako”, “Bakushu”, “Kantan”, and “Kanbare”, and commentaries on English haiku under such titles as “Haiku to Haiku no Sekai” (Haiku and the World of Haiku) and “Haiku – Sekai wo Nomikomu Shikei” (Haiku – The Poetic Style Captivating the World). He is a recipient of the “Association of Haiku Poets Review Award”.
After winning the Japan Advertising Photographers' Association Award in 1965, he made his debut with a major publisher with the "Beatles Tokyo" photo collection in 1966. Not limited to photography, he has been involved in a wide range of activities, including movie production, art and literature, crafts, and music production.
Joined "Kaitei" in 1962. Worn the Kaitei Award in 1991, and the Gendai Haiku Association Award in 2014. Representative of the society”Kaigen”, Gendai Haiku Association consultant and vice-president of the Haiku International Association. His haiku collections include "Tamaranzaka" and "Aki no Tao", and his books "Conditions of Haiku" and "Tota Kaneko."
His debut novel "No Life King" was a candidate for the Mishima Yukio Prize in 1988. A creator active across a wide spectrum, including as an actors, author, celebrity, lyricist, rapper and gardener.
A Kyorin University Facility of Foreign Studies professor, and former researcher at Harvard University. He also often appears on TV, including "The Lessons you Most Want to Take in the World," introducing content relating to language in an easy to understand way. His grandfather was the linguist Kyosuke Kindaichi, and his father was the Japanese language scholar Haruhiko Kindaichi.
Lives in Matsuyama City. Head of the haiku group “Itsuki Gumi” and a member of the Aoi Haiku Kai. Recipient of the 8th Haidan Prize. Also involved in the establishment of the Haiku Koshien competition. Selects content for such sites as the Matsuyama City official haiku site “Haiku Post 365.” First Haiku Capital Matsuyama Ambassador since 2015. Has published numerous works, including the haiku collections “Itsuki Shu Ryu,” “Ouchi de Haiku,” and “Natsui Itsuki no Haiku Kotohajime.”
Made her debut as an author in 1987 with "Our Neighbors' Crimes." Received the Naoki Award in 1999 for "Reason." She is a popular author not only for her thriller novel but also her period ones. One of the novelists that best represents modern Japan. Many of her works have been turned into TV shows or movies.
The winner of many competitions, including the Brouwer International Guitar Competition in 1992. He has released 23 CDs, and also performed the main theme for the jury prize winner at the Montreal World Film Festival, "Cape Nostalgia."