ABSTRACT
In 1946–7, Ye Qianyu (1907–1995) and his Trinidadian-Chinese wife, the dancer Dai Ailian (1916–2006), spent a year in the United States of America as guests of the State Department. The best-known document of their trip is “A Record of Paradise” (Tiantang ji), a picture-story narrative published as a serial in the Beiping newspaper Xinmin bao in 1948. Earlier, Ye Qianyu played a key role in the creation and production of influential illustrated magazines such as Shanghai Sketch (Shanghai manhua) and Modern Miscellany (Shidai huabao). After their return to China, Ye was appointed head of the Chinese painting department at the Central Academy of Fine Art, Beijing, and Dai Ailian became the founding director of the Beijing Dance School. This chapter considers the creative partnership of Ye Qianyu and Dai Ailian, the time they spent in America, and their place in Socialist Modernism.
