Bertrand Mao is an artist and teacher specializing in Chinese calligraphy and san sui (moutain-water) watercolor painting. Born near Shanghai in Jiangsu province, Mr. Mao fled to Taiwan as a teenager. An orphan on his own, he studied and gained entry into Suchow University’s law school program. From there, he came to the United States to get his LLM at Georgetown University Law Center.

Spending his first career establishing higher education cross-cultural study programs between the United States and Taiwan, Mr. Mao always maintained his passion for the classical Chinese arts including performing Chinese opera, playing the erhu, and painting san sui and Chinese calligraphy.

Mr. Mao joined VisArts in Rockville, Maryland in 1995 and has been an artist in residence, exhibiting and teaching students ever since. He has demonstrated and lectured on Chinese calligraphy and san sui painting at universities, libraries, art centers, and government institutions, including the Smithsonian’s Asian Art Museum and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.  Mr. Mao is a fixture during Lunar New Year celebrations, sharing his Chinese calligraphy and san sui painting expertise with the public.