Take a stroll along the street with many famous names

Editor’s note:

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Neither was Shanghai. Once dubbed "the Paris of the East,” the city has evolved into a fusion of multiculturalism. Along the way, Shanghai has accumulated a repository of stories about the people and events that have shaped its history. Five areas of the city occupy pride of place in that journey: People’s Square, Jing’an Temple, Xujiahui, Lujiazui and Xintiandi. This series, a collaboration with Shanghai Local Chronicles Library, visits them all to follow in the footsteps of time.

Nanchang Road was once home to many cultural luminaries in the last century. From Xu Zhimo’s romantic poetry to Ba Jin’s stirring “Torrent Trilogy” and Lin Fengmian’s masterful paintings, this quiet little street held the pulse of an era’s literature and art.

In the mid-1920s, as a wave of Peking University scholars moved south from Beijing and many overseas students returned, Shanghai was emerging as a cultural hub.

Writer Ba Jin (1904-2005) once called 59 Nanchang Road his home. After returning from Japan in 1937, he lived there until 1955.

The writer finished “Spring” and “Autumn,” two novels of his “Torrent Trilogy,” at the residence. The trilogy, considered his most influential masterpiece, along with his novel “Cold Nights,” solidified his status as one of China’s most significant cultural figures of the 20th century, earning him prestigious honors such as the Dante International Prize, the title of “People’s Writer” and the French Legion of Honor.

No. 11 of Lane 136 on Nanchang Road was once the residence of poet and essayist Xu Zhimo (1897-1931) and his wife Lu Xiaoman.

Xu studied banking at Clark University in the United States and later pursued economics at Columbia University. However, his time in Cambridge, England, where he was deeply influenced by Western education and the Romantic and Aesthetic movements, solidified his poetic style, leaving behind timeless works such as “Saying Goodbye to Cambridge Again.”

In 1926, while a professor at Peking University, Xu moved to Shanghai to teach at Guanghua University and Daxia University (both later became part of East China Normal University).

Today, at the intersection of Nanchang Road and Maoming Road S. stands a statue of Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore, commemorating his special connection with Xu. On March 29, 1929, Tagore made a stop in China, specifically visiting the couple in Shanghai. He stayed for two nights, during which they discussed poetry and art.

Tagore affectionately referred to the couple as “my son and daughter-in-law.” Upon his departure, the elder poet drew a self-portrait for them, which, when viewed from afar, resembles a mountain but up close, an elderly man.

Painter Lin Fengmian (1900-91), one of the founders of modern art education in China, once resided at 53 Nanchang Road.

He began living in the shikumen (stone-gated) house with his French wife and daughter in 1952. At the time, Lin held the positions of vice chairman of the Shanghai Artists Association, member of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and painter at the Shanghai China Art Academy.

However, in 1955 his wife and daughter emigrated to Brazil, leaving Lin to live alone in the house. He remained there until 1977, when he relocated to Hong Kong, having lived on Nanchang Road for 25 years.

No. 39 of Lane 136 was once the home of Fu Lei (1908-66), a renowned translator and literary critic. Having studied in France during his early years, Fu was deeply influenced by French culture and translated numerous works by literary giants such as Balzac, Romain Rolland and Voltaire.

In 1931, Fu returned to China after graduating from the University of Paris and took up residence at this place. At the time, he was appointed director of the general office at the Shanghai Art Academy and taught art history and French.

Though known for his temper, Fu was a dedicated and meticulous father. His approach to educating his sons, Fu Cong (Fou Ts’ong) and Fu Min, proved highly successful. His “Fu Lei’s Family Letters” became one of the best-known works on parental education in China.

Nearby, No. 7 of Lane 178 was the home of Guo Moruo (1892-1978), an intellectual giant whose research spanned a wide range of fields, including oracle bone script, poetry, history, historical drama and translation.

After graduating from Kyushu Imperial University in Japan in 1923, Guo returned to China with his wife and three children, staying at 180 Nanchang Road. During this time, they lived in financial hardship, even struggling to afford streetcar fares.

In April 1924, they had to return to Japan due to financial difficulties. In November of the same year, Guo and his family returned to Shanghai and Nanchang Road, and rented the house at No. 7 Lane 178, where he began to experience a turn of fortune.

Nanchang Road was home to many other cultural luminaries, with names that continue to resonate today. For instance, the three-story house at No. 48 Lane 136 was once home to three prominent figures in the film industry: actress Bai Yang lived on the third floor, actor Ying Yunwei on the second, and renowned director Wei Heling on the ground floor.