Growing up in the sixties in a remote northwestern part of China during the Cultural Revolution, Weiming Zhao used his passion for painting and drawing as an escape from the difficult times.
In the late seventies Weiming taught himself to read and speak English from a book on pronunciation. His studies led him to a ten-year career teaching English as a second language in China and eventually to Canada to pursue further studies at Brandon University. Five years later, he returned to China to reunite with his wife and young daughter. Together they returned to Canada and settled in Brandon, Manitoba.
After a hiatus from painting and drawing of almost three decades, Weiming’s childhood passion for art was rekindled. It was in the summer of 2003 in Lake of Woods, Ontario where he once again picked up his brushes, paint and easel and has not stopped since. The result is a portfolio of over 5000 paintings and sketches created en plein air (in open air).
