Junji Yoshii
Western style painter
Junji Yoshii (March 6, 1904 - November 23, 2004) was a Japanese Western-style painter. He was born in Sueyoshi-cho, Soo-gun (now Soo-shi), Kagoshima.
1904 Born in Sueyoshi-cho, Soo-gun, Kagoshima.
1922 Graduated from Kagoshima Prefectural Shibushi Junior High School (now Kagoshima Prefectural Shibushi High School)
1929 Graduated from Tokyo Fine Arts School, Western-style painting course
1940: Became a member of the Nika-kai
1961: Became a director of the Nika-kai
1965: Awarded the Japan Art Academy Prize
1972 Became the chairman of the judging committee of the South Japan Art Exhibition
1976 Became a member of the Japan Art Academy
1977: Awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Third Class
1979 Appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Nika-kai, an incorporated association
1985: Honoured as a Person of Cultural Merit
1989: Awarded the Order of Culture
2004: Turned 100 years old on 6 March 2004; died on 23 November 2004.
In 1988, in the last year of his life, he founded Kaseda Altenheim, a rest and relaxation garden with paintings and sculptures, based on the principle of "cultivating welfare and creating culture", also known as "culture in welfare". He also served as the chairman of the social welfare corporation "Nonohana-kai" in his hometown of Kagoshima Prefecture.
He is a recipient of the Order of Culture, a Person of Cultural Merit, a member of the Japan Art Academy, an honorary director of the Nika-kai, an honorary member of the Salon d'Automne, and an advisor to the Southern Japan Art Exhibition.