Paul Reps

Paul Reps (15 September 1895 - 12 July 1990) was an American artist, poet, and author. He is best known for his unorthodox haiku-inspired poetry that was published from 1939 onwards. He is considered one of America's first haiku poets.

In association with his writing, Reps was also a well-received artist. Many of his books have artwork influenced by Zen Buddhism displayed in association with his writings.

Reps was widely travelled and spent a large amount of his time in Asia. In Japan, his art was widely accepted and he often went there in association with the displays of his artwork in galleries and to reaffirm his Buddhist understanding.

According to Steven Levine, during the Korean war, Reps travelled to Japan to see one of his Zen masters. "At that time you couldn't go to Japan, because it was a staging place for the Korean War. So they said, 'you can't come in.' An immigration officer said, 'you can't come in now.' Paul took this immigration paper that he had written -- his application - turned it over and he wrote on the back of it, 'Drinking a cup of tea, I stop the war,' and he handed it to the immigration officer. The immigration officer looked at it and said, 'er, we need more people like you in Japan,' and allowed him in."[1]

In the later years of his life, Reps made his home on the island of Maui in Hawaii. In the two years before his death, he lived at the Haven Institute with his friends Jock McKeen and Bennet Wong (McKeen & Wong 1991).