Biography

Made in China and assembled in the USA, I was born in Beijing and moved to the US in 1995 when I was 11 years old.

After receiving a public education in Madison, NJ, I spent the 2003 summer between high school and college traveling across the United States. After 45 days riding Greyhound buses, I captured over 6000 photographs using my Olympus C3040Z camera and visited over 30 cities. Consequently, this trip had a profound effect on my photography interest.

I never formally studied photography and I was educated in chemistry (BA) and finance (MS) at the University of Rochester in Rochester, NY. I didn’t use any of my degrees and worked as a web application developer and later as an application engineer.

Photography remains as my primary interest for over 20 years. I am best known for my abstract architecture reflection series. I capture these “hidden” urban images that everyone has the opportunity to see if they just look up once in a while. I don’t do too much post-processing except to enhance the colors and do a little bit of cropping, if that’s needed. My photographs often exhibit a sense of balance, saturated coloration, geometric patterns, juxtaposition between elements, and imperfections that make each image its own. The lack of GPS locations also make my images unique in that it’s hard for me to retake the same photograph again.

Moreover, my photos have been exhibited in galleries since I was 19 years old. Collectors often include leaders of corporations and private institutions have also used my photographs commercially.

Exhibitions

  • 2022, September 4 to October 1: Gryphon Café (Wayne, PA) - “My Last Exhibition” (Dedicated to My Grandmother)
  • 2018, October: Gravy Studio and Gallery (Philadelphia, PA)
  • 2018, September: Beyond the Seams (Philadelphia, PA) - “Group Show”
  • 2016, January 9 to January 16: Con Artist Gallery (New York, NY) – “Is/Is Not”
  • 2015, December 16 to December 29: Con Artist Gallery (New York, NY) – “Religion, Inc.”
  • 2015, November 4 to November 18: Con Artist Gallery (New York, NY) – “Celebrity”
  • 2014, October 7 to November 2: Image City Photography Gallery (Rochester, NY) - “Nine Piece Exhibition”
  • 2012 to 2014: Recovery Partnership (Bethlehem, PA)
  • 2011, July 15 to August 14: Gallery 14 (Hopewell, NJ) - “Juried Photo Show”
  • 2011, January 6 to January 29: Artists for Art Gallery (Scranton, PA) - “Three Points of View”
  • 2007, March 3 to April 6: Ambré Studio (Bethlehem, PA) - “Architecture Perspective: A Geometric-Reflective Portfolio of Urban American Travel” Solo Exhibition
  • 2006, November 18 to January 18, 2007: Ambré Studio (Bethlehem, PA) - “Snow So White and the Wonders of Winter”
  • 2006, November 18 to December 30: Connexions Gallery (Easton, PA) - “Holiday Show”
  • 2006, September 13 to November 12: Connexions Gallery (Easton, PA) - “Fall Group Exhibition”
  • 2006, Spring: University of Rochester (Rochester, NY) - Harnett Gallery - “Exhibition U”
  • 2006, February: University of Rochester (Rochester, NY) - ASIS Gallery - “Birds Descend” Solo Exhibition
  • 2004, Fall: University of Rochester (Rochester, NY) - Harnett Gallery - “NYC Collection”
  • 2004, January: Chase Auditorium (Madison, NJ) - “Solo Exhibition of American Travels” Solo Exhibition
  • 2003: Madison Public Library (Madison, NJ) - “Ten Piece Exhibition”
  • 2003: Sweet Dreams Café (Madison, NJ) - “Earliest Works”

Publications

  • 2020: Zhaoism - The Autobiography of Hiatt Zhao: The First 25 Years (Kindle ebook and paperback from Amazon)
  • 2013: Architecture Perspective: The Ambré Collection (Kindle ebook and paperback from Amazon)
  • 2009: The Artistic Portfolio of Hiatt Zhao (out of print)
  • 2009: Architecture Perspective (out of print)
  • 2007: Teenage American Travel: Around the US in 45 Days (out of print)
  • 2005-2006, Spring 2005, Fall 2004, Spring 2004: LOGOS (archived at the University of Rochester libraries)
  • 2003: Glyphs (archived at Madison High School in Madison, NJ)
  • 2003: Windmill of Wonder, Images of the Mind (archived at the International Library of Photography)

Recognition

  • 2010: University of Rochester Department of Chemistry established the “Hiatt Zhao Art Appreciation Prize”
  • 2006, October 14: Certificate of Recognition Honorable Mention Award for “Picture Bucks County”

Press

  • 2007, March 15: “Young Traveler’s Camera Clicks Cleverly Mix Science and Art” – by Geoff Gehman (The Morning Call)