Ma Abo is drawing an oil painting Goddess Peak. [Photo/China Tibet Online]

Ma Abo, a famous national Hui nationality artist, was born in 1952 and grew up in Lhasa, Tibet. He graduated from the Minzu University of China in 1978, majoring in oil painting. He now is the vice chairman of Tibet Artists Association, member of China Artists Association and associate editor of Tibetan Art and Literature.

Two masterpieces of Ma Abo are presented in the "Beauty of Tibet" Painting and Photography Exhibition 2013 held in Australia.

Ma Abo said, when he was a kid, he liked to watch and enjoy the mural paintings and thangka in the temples of Lhasa. These excellent traditional arts sowed the artistic seeds in his life.

Ma Abo and his oil painting Sweetness of Light [Photo/China Tibet Online]

During the 1960s, new paintings, such as picture-story books, new year pictures, and canvas prints were brought to Lhasa from the inland of China. Ma Abo found the treasures in his art life and began to study painting by himself through copying these paintings. Later, he followed the teachers who are Han nationality, to learn the basic skills of arts, such as sketch. The artistic seeds in his heart started to take root.

In 1975, Ma Abo entered the Minzu University of China, studying oil painting in the school of art, which laid a solid foundation for realizing his artistic dream.

Ma Abo has traveled around Tibet for his painting exploration. The Tibetan manners, customs, distinctive culture and beautiful scenery have provided a lot of materials for his creation. These Tibetan characteristics and flavors are rooted in his works, shown not only by color but also by sculpting.

Ma Abo and his oil painting The Morning of Sagya County [Photo/China Tibet Online]

He is gratified that Tibet has trained many art talents since the peaceful liberation of Tibet. Students who are majoring in art have made a big contribution to the society.

Ma Abo considers that the modern Tibetan painters have a high level of skills and have created many works that reflect economic development and cultural prosperity in the Tibetan society. People can appreciate the traditional Tibetan folk culture from the painters' works, not only because the modern Tibetan life keeps traditional customs, but also because artists receive education that perfectly blends traditional cultural and modern life at the outset.

According to Ma Abo, the "Beauty of Tibet" Painting and Photography Exhibition 2013 is an excellent platform to present Tibetan life and art. The foreigners will be affected by the happpy life of Tibetan people in the works of the Tibetan artists.