Mai Onno
Born in Estonia in 1934, Mai grew up under the occupation of first the Soviets and then the Nazis. At the end of World War II, she fled her homeland for Germany, living as a displaced person in a camp where she received her early education. At 14-years-old and a refugee of war, Mai immigrated to Canada where she was cared for by two aunts.
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The only response to such an early life of trauma and dislocation, she explains, was to immerse herself in nature and art, studying at H.B. Beal Technical School, in London, Ontario. In 1957 she received a scholarship enabling her to continue her studies at the Instituto Allende in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Mexico has been her home since.
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While her sense of European heritage remains strong, her paintings absorb life in Mexico --- the natural world, the sunlight, the plants, and the landscapes have each helped her to heal. The organic forms found in nature have been a theme throughout the lifetime of her work, be it seed, bean, leaf, flower, insect, or butterfly. Mai transforms these forms with her art and in doing so reveals herself to the patient viewer.
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Mai’s work has been exhibited throughout galleries and museums in Mexico, Canada and the United States.
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To read Estonian artist Mai Onno, who escaped Stalin and Hitler, still thrives in Mexico by
