Just Before the Liberation

In the autumn of 1948, Cao Zengming, a student from our school, together with Ye Wenxi, established the West Lake Art Research Institute in Wolong Bridge, Guozhuang. They attracted more than 10 students and opened a painting class. Back then there were totally three schools teaching visual arts in Hangzhou. One of them was managed by the couple, Ni Yide and Liu Wei; and another one, named Jiemin Art Research Institute, was run by Li Changbai and some other classmates of mine in a courtyard inside the city. They thought their reputation was not as good as Ni Yide’s, so they invited Wu Dayu to endorse them. Also, I was invited to teach one or two classes per week to help their business grow faster. To assist, I even collected potatoes for them once when they had serious trouble with money because I thought their attitude toward the arts was serious and commendable.