Kōbō Abe
Kōbō Abe was a Japanese writer, playwright, photographer, and inventor, born as Kimifusa Abe.
Son of a doctor, he studied medicine at Tokyo University but abandoned it to pursue surrealist-influenced literary work.
Often compared to Kafka and Moravia, he explored individuals navigating alienating, nightmarish contemporary societies.
He debuted as a poet in 1947 and as a novelist in 1948.
International acclaim came with The Woman in the Dunes (1962), later adapted to film by director Hiroshi Teshigahara.
Abe founded an acting studio in 1973 and was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1977.
