Ai Qing (艾青, 1910-1996), also written Ai Ch'ing, was a Chinese poet and political prisoner, often regarded as one of the finest modern poets in China. 1910 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Poets are authors of poems. ... A political prisoner is anyone held in prison or otherwise detained, perhaps under house arrest, because their ideas or image either challenge or pose a real or potential threat to the state. ...

He was born in Zhejiang province in eastern China. From 1929-32 he studied in France, learning about topics like the art of Renoir and Van Gogh, the poetry of Mayakovsky and Verhaeren and the philosphy of Kant and Hegel. Zhejiang (Chinese: 浙江; pinyin: Zhèjiāng; Wade-Giles: Che-chiang; Postal System Pinyin: Chehkiang or Chekiang) is a eastern coastal province of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The name Renoir refers to more than one person. ... Self-portrait (1886) Vincent Willem van Gogh (March 30, 1853 - July 29, 1890) was a Dutch painter, generally considered one of the greatest painters in European art history. ... Portrait of Vladimir Mayakovsky Vladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky (Влади́мир Влади́мирович Маяко́вский) (July 7 (O.S.) = July 19 (N.S.), 1893 - April 14, 1930) was among the foremost representatives for the poetic futurism of early 20th century Tsarist Russia and the Soviet Union. ... Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (April 22, 1724 – February 12, 1804) was a Prussian philosopher, generally regarded as one of Europes most influential thinkers and the last major philosopher of the Enlightenment. ... Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (August 27, 1770 - November 14, 1831) was a German philosopher born in Stuttgart, Württemberg, in present-day southwest Germany. ...

After returning to Shanghai, China, he was imprisoned for opposing the Kuomintang. He was released in 1935, and moved from city to city around the country which was involved in an escalating war with Japan. After 1958 he was suspected of "rightism" and exiled to farms in Manchuria and then Xinjiang by the Communist authorities. He was not allowed to publish his works until 1978. Shanghai (Chinese: 上海; pinyin: ; Shanghainese IPA: ) is Chinas largest city and is situated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta. ... The Kuomintang (KMT) or Nationalist Party of China (Traditional: 中國國民黨; Simplified: 中国国民党; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chung-kuo Kuo-min-tang; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhongguo Guomindang) is a conservative political party currently active in the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan. ... Approximate extent Northeast China (Simplified Chinese: 东北; Traditional Chinese: 東北; pinyin: ; literally east-north), historically known as Manchuria, is the name of a region (ca. ... Xinjiang (Chinese: 新疆; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsin1-chiang1; Postal Pinyin: Sinkiang; literal meaning: New Frontier; Uyghur: ) Uyghurs Autonomous Region of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), sometimes known as Chinese Turkestan, East Turkestan (Turkestan also spelled Turkistan) or Uyghuristan. ...

He made a second journey to France in 1980, and in 1985 French president François Mitterrand awarded him the title of "Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters". François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (October 26, 1916 – January 8, 1996;  pronunciation) was a French politician and President of France from May 1981, re-elected in 1988, until 1995. ...

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References

• Columbia Encyclopedia (http://www.bartleby.com/65/ai/AiChing.html)
• Obituary (http://french.people.com.cn/french/200401/29/fra20040129_65100.html) (in French)
• asiaweek.com (http://www.asiaweek.com/asiaweek/96/0517/feat8.html) Obituary
• chineseliterature.com (http://www.chineseliterature.com.cn/modernliterature/author/aiqing.htm)