Zhou Lianxia

Noted for her wit and humor,

As an artist, Zhou Lianxia specialized in meticulous traditional Chinese ink and brush paintings that spoke to humanity's balance with nature, featuring delicate flowers, fish, birds and butterflies, as well as elegant ladies. and is the author of "The Collection of Poems嚶友詩集", "A Brief Talk on Learning Poems學詩淺說" (in cooperation with Qu Xieyuan瞿蛻園). In 1936, her painting won the Gold Medal at the First International Art Exhibition in Canada, and her name was included in the "World Celebrity Dictionary," published in the UK and Italy.

During the Anti-Japanese War period, writing along with other prominent writers like Eileen Chang (張愛玲), Zhou began to publish inspiring short stories designed to lift the spirits of her fellow Chinese. She was on the editorial board for the "Wanxiang萬象" Comprehensive Literary Monthly publication.

In the 1950s and 1960s, she was employed as a Professor of Art at the prestigious Shanghai Academy of Chinese Painting (上海中國畫院), where she mainly produced works for the Academy. During the turbulent 1960s, she was blinded in one eye, which curtailed her ability to paint for many years.

In 1980, Zhou immigrated to America, where she received treatment for her damaged eye and was able to resume painting. Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley presented the "Outstanding Women in Art" Honorary Award to her for her lifetime achievement in Art and Culture. Personal life At the age of 18, Zhou's work began to appear in major newspapers. By the age of 21, she had become a leading artist for the famous Wang Xin Ji Fan shop, which catered to the nobility and elite of Shanghai. In 1927, she married noted photographer and writer Xu Wanping(徐晚蘋), whom she considered her "soulmate." They had five children together and collaborated on publications of photos and poems.

In 1949, Xu took a short business trip to Formosa to help lead China's effort to take back the postal communication system on the island from the Japanese. Tragically ill-timed, this short trip caused Zhou and Xu to become inadvertently separated from one another for over 30 years when the borders between China and Formosa were closed in 1949.

Forced to support their five children on her own, Zhou continued painting and writing, always seeking new and innovative avenues of expression. She continued to collaborate with her friends Lu Xiaoman(陸小曼), Zhang Daqian (張大千), Qian Shoutie (錢瘦鐵), Song Xunlun (宋訓倫)and Wu Hufan (吳湖帆). Zhou and Wu created many exceptional artworks together during the 1950s, including the famous "Lotus and Mandarin Ducks," a painting and a poem, which is much sought after by collectors worldwide.

Zhou was reunited with her long-lost husband Xu Wanping in America in 1980. They lived together in Los Angeles with their children, Xu Zhaonan (徐昭南) and Xu Yuzhong (徐昱中), and grandchildren, including noted film producer, Evelyn Xu (徐汪瑒), until Xu's passing at the age of 95 and Zhou, at the age of 93.