Artist Biography & Facts

Mao Yan

Please note: Artists not classified as American in our database may have limited biographical data compared to the extensive information about American artists.

Creating biographies or improving upon them is a work in progress, and we welcome information from our knowledgeable viewers.

If you feel you have worthwhile information you would like to contribute, the following means of submission is the most efficient. We welcome your involvement!

1.  For Premier Dealers and museums already registered with askART your best approach is to log in, choose the artist (once he/she is in your list of artists), and submit your biography there. If you are a dealer or museum not currently registered, please click here to register, and then you may select your artist and submit a biography.

2.  For all others who have useful information about this artist, please email the information to [email protected]. Please note: All biographies will be fully viewable on Fridays, but the rest of the week biographies are available only to subscribers.

Biography Guidelines
When submitting biographical information, we appreciate your consideration of the following:

Please keep in mind that askART is not a promotional site, and accordingly biographical information should not be worded for purposes of 'advertising' an artist.

Our site is about PAINTERS, SCULPTORS, and ILLUSTRATORS. If you do not know a great deal about the artist, but have noteworthy information to share, we would welcome you to send it also to [email protected]. It is rewarding for all of us to see artists' files grow, and others may be eager to supplement what you have provided.

Non-Dealers and Museums:
Please introduce your information as follows: "The following biographical information has been provided by Jane Doe, the niece of the artist."

Dealers and Museums will be automatically credited with a link to their sites.

Just the facts, please. Our editors are trained to delete any hype or advertising verbiage such as “most famous,”  “internationally renowned,” “extraordinarily beautiful works.” 

If you do not know a great deal about the artist, answer as many of the following questions as you can. Other persons, seeing your entry, often add to the data. This is how many of the biographies grow.

Please include in your biography answers to as many of the following questions as possible:

Dealer Note: Please enter books, periodicals and museum references in the space provided. Do not combine book information with biography.

There are many strong biographies that you may refer to on our website, such as Cecilia Beaux, Edward Hopper, and Paul Sample. Please do not submit biographies with minimal facts or excessively promotional writing such as the following (unusable) wording:

What NOT to send:
     "The artist John Doe is the quintessential master of light, color, and scene. His brilliant canvases are full of feeling, where love can be felt through all the senses. Through his skillful brushwork, and drawing from his life experiences, he creates images where the viewer feels he has truly become one with the subject. Doe's paintings are sure to be sought by the discriminating collector. I/we have numerous spectacular works by Doe available for sale."

We appreciate your participation in askART. If you have any questions about submitting biographies, please send them to [email protected]

Share an image of the Artist.