(Leo) Hong Mao mingles virtuosity and unrestrained joy in his art. The Dublin, Ohio-based artist was born in the town of Chengdu in southwest China and was raised there during the Cultural Revolution. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Art degree in China in 1989 and came to Ohio ten years later, where he felt – and remained – at home.
Mao’s paintings capture visible objects but also the invisible vital forces that animate them. His philosophy asserts that laughter, love, wind, the spirit and life itself are all visible only through the things they animate. This solo exhibition includes portrait and landscape paintings in a vibrant, colorful style inspired by 18th and 19th century European and American masterpieces that Mao has observed while in the United States. His artwork can be found in collections in Canada, England, France, Switzerland, Japan, Taiwan and The United States.
Gallery visits may be scheduled at visitdublinartscouncil.as.me/
IMAGE: Dublin’s Pedestrian Bridge at Summer Sunset, acrylic on canvas, 48×72” by Leo Hong Mao. (photo courtesy of the artist)