The 2024 Official Artwork, ‘Fleeing Beauty,’ captures the essence of cherry blossoms against the iconic backdrop of Washington DC’s monuments and a sneak peek of the beauftil Tidal Basin. 

Nicolas Shi, a long time Washington, DC resident, was born in El Salvador from Chinese parents. In 1980, he left his war-torn country and came to the United States to attend college, receiving a Masters degree in Architectural Engineering from Oklahoma State University in 1986. He practiced Architecture and Engineering for more than ten years before dedicating himself to painting. His work is influenced by his Latin American upbringing, his Chinese heritage, and his formal education in the United States. He mixes the bright colors of Central America with the harmony and simplicity of traditional Chinese painting and the boldness found in contemporary American art.

Shi has exhibited internationally, most notable at Museo de Arte, El Salvador; Centro Cultural Casa de la Moneda, Santiago, Chile; Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum, Washington, DC; the Gasteig Cultural Center, Munich; the Ibero- Amerikanishes Institut, Berlin; and the Biggs Museum of American Art, Dover, DE. His work is included in numerous private and public collections, including the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum, the Inter-American Development Bank, Museo de Arte de El Salvador, DC Art Bank, and the University of Maryland. 

View more of Shi’s work at NicolasFShi.com and Instagram.