Famous People in Japan



Yamashita Kiyoshi

Date of Birth March 10, 1922
Date of Death July 12, 1971
Place of Birth Chiba

Yamashita Kiyoshi's childhood is stormy. When he went to Yawata school for differently-abled children, he was diagnosed as mentally disabled, for his IQ was from 70 to 80. It was not sure that it is from his parents, but they considered themselves to be a part of the reason. His real father was often attacked by acute pain on his head and died early, when Kiyoshi was only a baby. After that, he was brought up by a frenzied drunken foster father.

He had a bad stomach ailment when he was 3 years old, and therefore, could not walk. Two months later, he got rid of that, but could not speak a lot. He, his mother and 2 younger brothers separated from their awful father, all of them got into the nursing institution.

In that institution, they drew many pictures and he put a lot of small pieces of papers on them. His works were splendid and he increased his talent about it, because he liked to do it. He started to roam when he was 18, he was alone and unselfish, but he wanted to live as he liked. His most famous words was this: I like best to be a tramp.

People thought highly of his pictures and made the highest bid for them. But Kiyoshi did not know about it, all he wanted to do is to draw his favorite pictures being a tramp.

References: Hadaka no Taisho Horoki, written by Sikiba Toshizo

Reported by: Akane Kodama
Data verified by: Mikako Mizutan
Date of Report: November 1995

Back to the main page