(b 1097; d 1164). Calligrapher and poet. At the early age of 19 he was appointed to a high government office. After a political and military conflict with his father, Tadazane (1078-1162), and his brother Yorinaga (1120-56), which also included the issue of succession to the throne, Tadamichi emerged triumphant and served as regent for 38 years near the end of the Heian era (794-1185). When he was taken by his father at the age of six for an audience with Emperor Horikawa (reg 1087-1107), he is said to have been given a calligraphy textbook by ONO NO MICHIKAZE, one of the Sanseki ('three brush traces'; Three Masters) of calligraphy of the early Heian period. Soon recognized for his writing skills, he began creating calligraphies for plaques, religious petitions (ganmon) and on large square poem cards (shikishi). Tadamichi based his style on that of (2) Fujiwara no Kozei, another of the Sanseki, but developed a more deliberate, vigorous, stronger stroke, less elegant and smooth than the styles of the early Heian-period court calligraphers, and more appropriate to the tastes of the warrior classes, which were then in the ascendancy. After his son Motozane became regent, he retired to the temple of Hosshoji, where he died. His calligraphic style, which therefore became known as the Hosshoji style, flourished for many years. Tadamichi was also celebrated as a poet, writing in Japanese and Chinese. Of the works brushed by him, drafts of 29 letters are extant, but none of his poetry has survived.
Part of the Fujiwara family
See the Abbreviations for further details.
