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Maia Chao

She // Her // Hers

Artist

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

A person with long, straight, dark hair is seated in a wooden chair, shown from the torso up against a plain background. They wear a collared shirt printed with a landscape of green trees, blue sky, and golden hills. Their left arm is relaxed on the back of the chair in a calm and casual pose.

Photo by Zoë Chao.

“As perpetual social, environmental, and political crises deepen, and as privatization threatens collectivity, I am drawn to making work that meditates on the beauty and suffering of our contemporary condition.”

Maia Chao is an artist working collaboratively in performance, film/video, and public practice. ​Chao has made commissions for the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Times Square Arts, The Shed, and MoMA Education. Her work has been presented at the RISD Museum, Bronx Museum, Mural Arts Philadelphia, Boston Center for the Arts, Tufts University Art Galleries, Smack Mellon, and Oregon Contemporary. She has completed fellowships and residencies at the Fine Arts Work Center, Pioneer Works, and Queer|Art, among others.

Named a Pew Fellow in 2022, she attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in 2023. She is based in Philadelphia and is currently full time faculty at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). 

In 2026, she will present a performance commission at the 2026 Whitney Biennial. Chao will also make a video commission for the Light Work Urban Video Project at the Everson Museum of Art, in collaboration with Erin Johnson.

Donor -This award was generously supported by Todd and Betiana Simon.

This artist page was last updated on: 01.14.2026

Visual Art
An art gallery with bright white walls and modern lighting. In the foreground, three children stand facing several abstract sculptures placed on low white platforms. The sculptures are made of various materials like bronze, wood, and stone and include abstract shapes, a smooth reclining figure, and an oval form with two large holes. In the background, facing the children, a row of six teenagers stands still among framed paintings and more artwork on the walls. The setting is quiet and contemplative.

Agents of Deterioration by Maia Chao, made in collaboration with Ethan Philbrick and performed by the Children’s Chorus of Washington DC, 2024.

Photo by Rick Coulby, courtesy of Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.

Several people, mostly wearing business attire, sit on modern office chairs equipped with wheels, arranged closely together in a circle. Their faces are not visible, but one person’s legs — bare and muscular in running shoes — are extended forward, suggesting motion. The ground beneath the chairs is wet and reflective, indicating the group may be participating in an outdoor performance near water or a fountain. The overall impression is active and unusual, mixing formal and informal elements in a workplace-inspired scene.

Still from Creative Management by Maia Chao, 2023. Live performance in Love Park as part of Mural Arts’ People’s Budget project. Video by Ty Burdenski.

Two groups of nine people stand in a large public square, surrounded by a crowd of onlookers. The two groups hold identical poses, clustered together raising their arms, craning backwards, holding smartphones high above their heads as if taking selfies. They are within white tape lines forming a rectangle on the ground. Bright advertising billboards tower overhead, including a prominent Coca-Cola sign and various billboards. The atmosphere is busy, energetic, and urban, with many other people and tall buildings visible in the background.

American Idle by Maia Chao, 2025. Performed in Times Square, commissioned by Times Square Arts.

Photo by Maria Baranova.