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Yu Feng 郁風
(1916-2007)

The niece of short story writer and poet, Yu Dafu 郁達夫 (1896–1945), Yu Feng studied oil painting first at the Beiping Art School (Beiping Yishu Zhuanke Xuexiao 北平藝術專科學校) and then later under Pan Yuliang and Xu Beihong at the National Central University (Guoli Zhongyang Daxue 國立中央大學) in Nanjing. When she returned to Shanghai in 1935, her uncle introduced her to the art and literature circles and she began publishing her work in leading magazines. The following year, Yu Feng began turning her attention to political activism and founded the Young Women’s Club (Qingnian Funü Julebu 青年婦女俱樂部).

During the war years, Yu Feng channeled her energy into the Resistance Movement: she worked for the anti-Japanese newspaper Jiuwang ribao 救亡日報 (Salvation Daily), met and worked with leftist playwright Tian Han, and even briefly infiltrated the Guangzhou division of the Guomingdang war effort as a secret agent for the Chinese Communist Party. In 1939 she appeared in theatrical productions staged on the frontlines in northern Guangdong. In Hong Kong in 1940, she served as chief editor of Plowing (Gengyun 耕耘), a magazine she cofounded with Huang Miaozi 黄苗子 (1913-2012), and with artist collectives produced anti-Japanese propaganda and public art projects. Yu Feng and Huang fled to southwestern China in 1941, where she painted the landscapes and ethnic groups of Sichuan. In Chongqing, she and Huang reconnected with friends from Shanghai and formed a bohemian collective they called “The Layabouts Lodge” (Erliu tang 二流堂). In 1944 she joined the Art Institute headed by Xu Beihong in Chongqing, and in 1945 she participated in the Joint Exhibition of Modern Painting in Chongqing. After the defeat of Japan, Yu Feng returned to Shanghai and participated in the Shanghai Artists’ Association’s (Shanghai Meishu Zuojia Xiehui 上海美術作家協會) first exhibition.

Following the end of the Civil War, Yu Feng relocated to Beijing with Huang, and she spent the next few decades associated with the Central Academy of Art. In the mid 1950s, she directed a Dress Reform Campaign that consisted of a team of women artists and designers dedicated to guiding the development of Chinese women’s clothing. During the Cultural Revolution, she was imprisoned for seven years. Following her release in 1975, Yu Feng began to paint again; in 1982, she exhibited Life Awakening in Springtime (Chunfeng chui you sheng 春风吹又生) at the French Salon Exhibition and won the gold prize.