MEDITERRANEAN CONFERENCE CENTER
July 19–21, 2026 

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Kazume Noritake

則武一女

Kazume Noritake is a Japanese poet and a member of the Japan-Europe Palace Art Association.
Her works have been exhibited not only in Japan, but also in countries around the world.

則武一女は日本の詩人。日欧宮殿芸術協会の会員。
日本のみならず世界各国に作品を出展。

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 Warm atmosphere 

 やさしい空気 

 

 Becoming a bird 

 鳥になって 

 

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Japan-Europe Palace Art Association Commentary

Noritake Kazume’s poetry possesses a distinctive sensitivity that observes ordinary scenes of daily life while quietly drawing forth the anxiety, tenderness, and atmosphere of the age that lie beneath them. In Becoming a Bird, the poet carefully depicts a flock of birds gathered together, yet the scene transcends mere observation of nature and gradually connects itself to the emotional reality of children living amid war. Rather than loudly condemning the unrest of the world, the poem reveals a profound empathy — an attempt to imagine others as living beings sharing the same fragile existence.

By contrast, Gentle Air portrays a small act of kindness exchanged within the bustle of a foreign town. Nothing dramatic occurs; nevertheless, through the old man’s gesture of offering a chair and the poet’s quiet reception of that gesture, a genuine human warmth emerges. One of Noritake’s defining strengths lies in the ability to reveal loneliness and compassion — elements rooted deeply within human existence — through seemingly unremarkable moments.

What unites both works is the gentleness of their gaze. The poems do not impose conclusions or overexplain the world before them. Instead, by simply observing the scenes at hand, they awaken emotions and memories within the reader. For that reason, the works never feel didactic or forceful; what remains after reading is a lingering resonance and a renewed sense of faith in humanity itself.