Residences have the write stuff
Print Edition
The restored study of the late translator Cao Ying (1923-2015) and the former residence of playwright Xia Yan (1900-1995) have been opened to the public in Xuhui District.
The Cao Ying Study, in a historical villa at 178 Wulumuqi Road S., near the former residence of the famous translator of Russian literature, showcases his life.
It opened on Saturday, one day before Cao’s birthday, which realized one of his last wishes, said his daughter Sheng Shanshan.
She helped arrange the study.
Cao, whose real name was Sheng Junfeng, translated all the novels of Leo Tolstoy into Chinese. He aimed to create a bridge between China and Russia with the translated works, Sheng said. He used the pseudonym Cao Ying, literally meaning “baby grass,” to demonstrate his small but vital power.
The study recreates Cao’s working environment with his original desk, chair, stationery, translation tools and manuscripts. A magnifying glass presented by one of his students is displayed on the desk along with an alarm and dictionary.
Cao spent six years translating “War and Peace,” the same time it took Tolstoy to write the masterpiece.
He made cards for each of the 559 characters in the novel to better understand their characteristics and relationships, according to Sheng.
The former residence of Xia, which is in the same compound, features a retrospective exhibition of the playwright’s experiences in Shanghai, especially his devotion to the revolutionary campaign after joining the Communist Party of China.
Xia, who led the establishment of the League of the Left-Wing Writers in Shanghai in the 1930s to fight Kuomintang repression, lived in the villa between 1949 and 1955.
The three-story house has the original gates, stairs and fireplace. Many original exhibits donated by Xia’s family recreate the living conditions of the playwright. A tree planted by Xia and his son has also been retained in the garden.
“Xia often dressed like a professor to disguise his real identity with the Communist Party of China,” said Chen Jian, one of the first group of visitors and a researcher on Xia. “He even had three doors at one of his residences to avoid being captured.”
Book clubs, lectures and readings will be held in the compound to make it a cultural hub, according to the Xuhui culture bureau.
Visitors will be able to make reservations between Wednesday and Friday through the WeChat account (meilihengfu) and enter the buildings for free between 9am and 4:30pm.
Each building will receive 200 visitors daily with a Chinese-language guide available.
The Xuhui government has already opened the former homes of writer Ba Jin (1904-2005), playwright Ke Ling (1909-2000) and cartoonist Zhang Leping (1910-1992).
Another historical structure, the Cloisters Apartments, built in the 1930s, will be converted into an exhibition hall to showcase the culture and architecture of the Hengfu (Hengshan and Fuxing roads) protection zone, which has 15 heritage structures, 1,074 excellent buildings and 1,620 preserved structures.
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