was a Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 novelist and poet, active during the Showa

Showa period

The , or Shōwa era, is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of the Shōwa Emperor, Hirohito, from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989.The Shōwa period was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor...

 and Heisei periods of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

Biography

Shimizu was born in Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

, and attended the Seisoku Eigo Gakko in Kanda

Kanda

-People:*Aika Kanda, a Japanese announcer of NHK*Hiroyuki Kanda, a top Japanese chef, and his eponymous Kanda restaurant in Roppongi, one of only 8 restaurants in Japan to earn 3 Michelin stars*Masaki Kanda, a Japanese actor...

. His first work, Tsuru ("Crane") published in 1941 caught the attention of noted poet Ishida Hakyo, who took him on as a student. He later studied fiction writing under noted author Yokomitsu Riichi

Yokomitsu Riichi

was an experimental, modernist Japanese writer.Yokomitsu began publishing in dōjinshi such as Machi and Tō after entering Waseda University in 1916. In 1923, he published Nichirin , Hae and more in the magazine Bungeishunjū, which made his name popular...

. In 1944, his novel Karitachi ("Wild Geese") was awarded the prestigious Akutagawa Prize

Akutagawa Prize

The is a Japanese literary award presented semi-annually. It was established in 1935 by Kan Kikuchi, then-editor of Bungeishunjū magazine, in memory of author Ryūnosuke Akutagawa...

.

His output was prolific in the post-war years, and he also turned towards literary criticism

Literary criticism

Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...

, particularly on poetry. From 1991 to 2004 he was director of the Kamakura Museum of Literature

Kamakura Museum of Literature

The is a small museum in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, that contains material about writers who have lived, died, or were active in the city of Kamakura itself. The museum displays personal effects, manuscripts, first editions, and documents owned by well over a hundred writers of Japanese...

, which he had helped create.