Chan Chao (born 1966 in
Kalemyo, Burma) is an American photographer.
Biography
Chao was born in Burma (now
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
) in 1966. He and his family left Burma for the United States in 1978.
[Brief biography of Chao](_blank)
George Mason University, official website. Retrieved December 25, 2010
Chao studied under
John Gossage
John Gossage (born 1946) is an American photographer, noted for his artist's books and other publications using his photographs to explore under-recognised elements of the urban environment such as abandoned tracts of land, debris and garbage, and ...
at the
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of Mary ...
. When he turned 30, Chao decided to visit Burma for the first time since his family left but was denied a
visa
Visa most commonly refers to:
*Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company
** Visa Debit card issued by the above company
** Visa Electron, a debit card
** Visa Plus, an interbank network
*Travel visa, a document that allows ...
. Instead, he travelled to
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
and crossed the border illegally into Burma, where he photographed a Burmese rebel camp.
[Nicole M. Miller]
"Chan Chao: Something Went Wrong" review
''The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', official website. Retrieved December 25, 2010 These images comprise his books ''Burma: Something Went Wrong'' and ''Letter from PLF''. He also has a book of female nudes entitled ''Echo''. His Burma portraits were included in the 2002
Whitney Biennial
The Whitney Biennial is a biennial exhibition of contemporary American art, typically by young and lesser known artists, on display at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, United States. The event began as an annual exhibition in ...
.
Chao was one of 113 artists selected for the show.
One of the curators of the show said, "With Chan Chao's photos, there certainly is a quality of photojournalism… but they are also pieces of art."
Chao's photographs are in the permanent collection of the
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is an art museum beside the National Mall, in Washington, D.C., the United States. The museum was initially endowed during the 1960s with the permanent art collection of Joseph H. Hirshhorn. It was des ...
, the
Corcoran Gallery of Art
The Corcoran Gallery of Art was an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University.
Overview
The Corcoran School of the Arts & Design ...
, the
Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, known informally as "The Whitney", is an art museum in the Meatpacking District and West Village neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1930 by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875–1942), ...
, the
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is a modern and contemporary art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art, and was ...
, the
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) is an art museum located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles. LACMA is on Museum Row, adjacent to the La Brea Tar Pits (George C. Pa ...
, the
New Orleans Museum of Art
The New Orleans Museum of Art (or NOMA) is the oldest fine arts museum in the city of New Orleans. It is situated within City Park, a short distance from the intersection of Carrollton Avenue and Esplanade Avenue, and near the terminus of the ...
, and the
LaSalle Bank
LaSalle Bank Corporation was the holding company for LaSalle Bank N.A. and LaSalle Bank Midwest N.A. (formerly Standard Federal Bank). With US$116 billion in assets, it was headquartered at 135 South LaSalle Street in Chicago, Illinois. LaS ...
Photography Collection. His work has been published in ''
Colors Magazine'', ''
Conde Nast Traveler
Conde may refer to:
Places
United States
* Conde, South Dakota, a city
France
* Condé-sur-l'Escaut (or simply 'Condé'), a commune
Linguistic
''Conde'' is the Ibero-Romance form of "count" (Latin ''comitatus'').
It may refer to:
* Count ...
'',
GEO Magazine, ''
Culture+Travel
''Culture+Travel'' (formerly ''Culture & Travel'') is a travel magazine based in New York City, New York. Published by Louise Blouin Media and founded by former Conde Nast editorial director James Truman, it was launched in 2006 as a bi-monthly pr ...
Magazine'' and ''
The Walrus
''The Walrus'' is an independent, non-profit Canadian media organization. It is multi-platform and produces an 8-issue-per-year magazine and online editorial content that includes current affairs, fiction, poetry, and podcasts, a national s ...
''.
Chan Chao lives in the Washington, D.C., area. He teaches photography at
George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
and
American University
The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...
.
He previously taught at the
Corcoran College of Art and Design
The Corcoran School of the Arts and Design (known as the Corcoran School or CSAD) is the professional art school of the George Washington University, in Washington, DC.Peggy McGloneUniversity names first director of Corcoran School of the Arts and ...
.
References
External links
Chao's official website*
Burma: Something Went Wrong'
*
Letter from PLF'
Chao's photos at the Hirschhorn Museum
* Chao, Chan.
Burma: Something Went Wrong' (Tucson, Ariz.
Nazraeli Press 2000).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chao, Chan
1966 births
Living people
Burmese emigrants to the United States
American portrait photographers
Photographers from Washington, D.C.
Corcoran School of the Arts and Design alumni
Corcoran School of the Arts and Design faculty
George Washington University faculty
People from Sagaing Region