Rainny Zhao’s work is rooted in portraiture and figurative art, reaching beyond likeness into the inner landscapes we all carry. She is drawn to the language of gesture, light, and atmosphere, the fleeting moments when emotion reveals itself without words.Working primarily in oil, Zhao combines classical principles with an intuitive, fluid approach. She favors a wet-on-wet technique, allowing colors to mingle naturally and brushwork to shift between precise marks and freer strokes, guiding the viewer’s eye and emotional connection. A limited palette unifies tone, while varied edges create depth without overworking the surface.Before she was a painter, Zhao trained in classical piano, with Chopin as her greatest companion at the keys. That musical background still flows through her work today: the pacing of a brushstroke, the rise and fall of contrast, and the pauses in composition often feel to her like playing a nocturne on canvas.Her paintings have been exhibited with the Oil Painters of America, the American Impressionist Society, and the Portrait Society of America, earning multiple awards.