was the

pen-name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

of Arishima Mibuma, a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

and

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

active in the Taishō and

Shōwa period Shōwa may refer to: * Hirohito (1901–1989), the 124th Emperor of Japan, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa * Showa Corporation, a Japanese suspension and shock manufacturer, affiliated with the Honda keiretsu Japanese eras * Jōwa (Heian ...

. He also used ''Utosei'' and then ''Jugatsutei'' as alternative pen names.

Early life

Ikuma was born in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

into a wealthy family as the son of an ex-

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

official in the

Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a part of the government in most countries that is responsible for matters related to the finance. Lists of current ministries of finance Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Finance (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Finance and Eco ...

. His older brother was the writer,

Arishima Takeo was a Japanese novelist, short-story writer and essayist during the late Meiji and Taishō periods. His two younger brothers, and , were also authors. His son was the internationally known film and stage actor, Masayuki Mori. Early life Ari ...

, and his younger brother, the writer and painter

Satomi Ton is a feminine Japanese given name which is also used as a surname. Possible writings Satomi can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *里美, "hometown, beauty" *怜美, "wise, beauty" *聡美, "wise, beauty" *智美, "wisdo ...

. He graduated from what is now the

Tokyo University of Foreign Studies , often referred to as TUFS, is a specialist research university in Fuchū, Tokyo, Japan. TUFS is primarily devoted to foreign language, international affairs and foreign studies. It also features an Asia-African institution. History The Uni ...

, where he specialized in the

Italian language Italian (''italiano'' or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. Together with Sardinian, Italian is the least divergent language from Latin. Spoken by about 85 m ...

. After graduation, he studied Western-style painting under

Fujishima Takeji was a Japanese people, Japanese painter, noted for his work in developing Romanticism and impressionism within the ''yoga (art), yōga'' (Western-style) art movement in late 19th- and early 20th-century Japanese painting. In his later years, he ...

. He then went to Europe in 1905 to study painting and sculpture in Italy and France, and was especially drawn to the works of

Paul Cézanne Paul Cézanne ( , , ; ; 19 January 1839 – 22 October 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionism, Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th-century conception of artistic endeavour to a ...

Literary career

After Ikuma's return to Japan in 1910, he joined the ''

Shirakaba The was an influential Japanese literary coterie, which published the literary magazine '' Shirakaba'', from 1910 to 1923. History In 1910, a loose association of alumni of the prestigious Gakushuin Peer’s School in Tokyo began a literary s ...

'' literary circle and participated in production of the first issue their

literary magazine A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry, and essays, along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letter ...

. He published new-style poems and short stories in the magazine, and used it as a vehicle to introduce the works of the French

impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

painter

to the Japanese public. In 1913, he published his first

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

anthology, ''Kōmori no gotoku'' ("Like a Bat"), in which he exhibits a harmony between his intuition as a painter and his sensitivity as a poet. In 1914, he suggested the addition of a second

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

section to the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

's annual Exhibition of Fine Arts, but this was turned down. Instead, he founded the ''Nikakai'' ("Second Division Society") Exhibition with Ishii Hakutei and Tsuda Seifu as a rival to the official government exhibition. In 1914, he also translated

Umberto Boccioni Umberto Boccioni (, ; 19 October 1882 – 17 August 1916) was an influential Italian painter and sculptor. He helped shape the revolutionary aesthetic of the Futurism movement as one of its principal figures. Despite his short life, his approach ...

's ''Manifesto of Futurist Sculpture'' from the Italian into Japanese, thus introducing the

Futurism Futurism ( it, Futurismo, link=no) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such ...

movement to the Japanese modern art world. In addition to his painting and translations, he wrote novels, including ''Nan-ō no Hi'' ("Days in Southern Europe") and ''Uso no Hate'' ("The End of a Lie"). He is also noted for his essay, ''Bijutsu no Aki'' ("Autumn of Fine Arts") and for translation of the recollections of Cézanne from French to

. Ikuma lived in his father's cottage at

Kamakura is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939. Kamak ...

Kanagawa prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kana ...

from 1893 to 1895; then took up residence in Kamakura permanently from 1920 until his death in 1974. In 1937, he became a member of the Imperial Art Academy. In 1964, he was designated a

Person of Cultural Merit is an official Japanese recognition and honor which is awarded annually to select people who have made outstanding cultural contributions. This distinction is intended to play a role as a part of a system of support measures for the promotion of ...

by the Japanese government. His grave is at the Kamakura Reien Cemetery. His house at

Inamuragasaki is a cape at the western end of Yuigahama (Beach) in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The cape divides Yuigahama from Shichirigahama (Beach) and Enoshima. Its name seems to stem from its shape, similar to a stack of rice at harvest time (an ...

, Kamakura has been physically moved to Shinshūshinmachi in

Nagano prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

, where it now houses the Arishima Ikuma Memorial Museum.

References

*Berhaus, Gunter. ''International futurism in arts and literature''. Walter de Gruyter (2000). * Weisenfeld, Gennifer. ''MAVO: Japanese Artists and the Avant-Garde, 1905-1931''. University of California Press (2001). * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arishima, Ikuma Japanese male short story writers Japanese essayists Japanese translators French–Japanese translators People from Yokohama 1882 births 1974 deaths 20th-century Japanese painters 20th-century Japanese poets 20th-century Japanese novelists 20th-century translators 20th-century Japanese short story writers 20th-century essayists 20th-century Japanese male writers

Early life

Literary career

See also

References