Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t12.4

v2.c10.s2.t12.4

Ai Qing was born in Jinhua of Zhejiang province in China. In 1928, Ai Qing entered the Hangzhou National West Lake School of Art where the great artist Lin Fengmian impacted his life greatly. Under Lin’s encouragement, he went to France the following year to study painting, where he became interested in modern European poetry. Ai Qing returned to China in early 1932 and joined the China Leftist Artists’ Federation (中国左翼美术家联盟) in Shanghai. He engaged himself in various revolutionary and cultural activities there and was soon arrested for opposing Chiang Kai-shek. When in prison he wrote several poems, among