Bio:
Anthony M. Cairo (B. 1993) is a traditional artist living in Lansing, Michigan. He received his BFA from Kendall College of Art and Design in 2015 with a focus in drawing. After graduating, he took on an apprenticeship at the Michigan State Capitol Building learning traditional oil painting techniques and the fundamentals of decorative art restoration. In 2017 the artist began teaching himself how to paint landscapes after viewing an impactful exhibition of plein air works by Frederic Edwin Church and Claude Monet at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Today, he works as a nationally awarded landscape painter and artist for the Michigan State Capitol. His work is regularly exhibited in the United States, and can be found in public collections of the Michigan State Capitol and private collections around the country. His paintings have been featured in Southwest Art and Plein Air magazine.
Artist Statement:
“The complex and endless beauty of the natural world is my greatest influence. I continue to find a sense of wonder in these spaces, which have become my greatest teachers. Above all, I value the elusive harmonies found in nature over subject matter alone. I am drawn to subjects that inspire me through their lyrical qualities of light, atmosphere, color, and design. This approach encourages me to think more abstractly about what I paint, why I paint, and the visual decisions I make to express these experiences.
As a Michigander, my love of plein air painting and backcountry backpacking continually fuels my artistic exploration. Working primarily in oil, I study and observe nature directly in the field, where the experience of light, color, and atmosphere becomes essential to my process. The consistent practice of plein air painting allows me to communicate a more intimate visual perspective. When I’m in the studio, I use color sketches, photographs, and memory to recreate these meaningful experiences. My focus is to remain faithful to the mood and emotional resonance conveyed through a fleeting moment in time. The realism in my work emerges through carefully layered, expressive mark-making intended to capture the living quality of those transient experiences.”
Awards
2026 15th Annual Plein Air Salon Finalist (January)
2025 15th Annual Plein Air Salon Finalist (July)
2024 Top 100 for “Best Clouds and Sky” July 2024 PleinAir Salon
2023 David Metteri Memorial Art Award at FRESH! Plein Air Paint Out hosted by the Suzanne Haskew Art Center
2023 Honorable Mention for “Sunbathe” at Kavanagh Gallery, St. Charles, IL
2022 3rd Place at the FRESH! Plein air Paint Out hosted by the Suzanne Haskew Art Center
2021 Southwest Art Magazine’s 21 under 31
2021 10th Annual Plein Air Salon Finalist (Best Artist Under 30)
Selected Exhibitions
2025
Solo Exhibition, Numinous Light, The People’s Church of East Lansing, Lansing, MI
Group Exhibition 44th Annual Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolor, View, Old Forge, NY
Group Exhibition, 44th Annual Michigan Fine Arts Competition, Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center, Birmingham, MI
Group Exhibition, Daybreak & Dusk, Bryan Memorial Gallery, Jeffersonville, VT
Group Exhibition, Small Works Exhibition, The Rice Gallery of Fine Art, Overland Park, KS
Online Group Exhibition, Bright/Light, The Cultural Center of Cape Code, MA
2024
Solo Exhibition, Pop-Up Exhibition with Anthony M. Cairo, Dimondale, MI
Plein Air Competition/Exhibition, Paint Dexter, Dexter, MI
Solo Exhibtion, (July 9th-August 25th), In Bloom, Shiawassee Art Center, Owosso, MI - Interview Link
Group Exhibition, 43rd Annual Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolor, View, Old Forge, NY
Group Exhibition, Light on the Easel, The Rice Gallery of Fine Art, Overland Park, KS
Two-Person Exhibition, Jennifer Ross and Anthony M. Cairo, The Okemos Library, Okemos, MI
2023
Plein Air Competition/Exhibition, FRESH! Plein Air Event, Suzanne Haskew Arts Center Milford, MI
Group Exhibition, Small Works Show, Rhode Island Watercolor Society, Pawtucket, RI
Group Exhibition, 94th Michigan Contemporary Art Exhibition, Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI
Group Exhibition, 2023 Great Northern Art Explosion, AuSable Artisan Village Center, Grayling, MI
Group Exhibition, 90th Annual Juried Exhibition of the Hudson Valley Art Association, Lyme Art Association, Old Lyme, CT
Group Exhibition, 42nd Annual Michigan Fine Arts Competition, Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center, Birmingham, MI
Group Exhibition, Members Juried Show, Shiawassee Art Center, Owosso, MI
Group Exhibition, Discovering Traditions: Landscape Painting, Artworks, Big Rapids, MI
Group Exhibition, Environments, Honorable Mention for “Sunbathe”, Kavanagh Gallery, St. Charles, IL
2022
Group Exhibition, 78th Wabash Valley Exhibition, Swope Art Museum, Terre Haute, IN
Group Show, Small Works Exhibition, Northville Art House, Northville, MI
Plein Air Competition (Placed 3rd), FRESH! Plein Air Paint Out, Suzanne Haskew Art Center, Milford, MI
2021
Group Exhibition, Plein Air Exhibition, Grand Valley Artists, Grand Rapids, MI
2020
Group Exhibition, Real People, Old Courthouse Figurative League, Woodstock, IL
Workshops
Upcoming
September 19th 2026 - Plein Air Workshop at Windmill Island Park through the Holland Arts Council
Past
2025 - Plein Air Workshop for the Great Lakes Plein Air Painters, Owosso, MI
2024 - 2025 Plein Air Painting Workshops with Ghosthouse Fine Art Studio, Grand Rapids, MI
2023 Plein Air Painting Workshop hosted by Artworks in Big Rapids , MI
2022 Decorative Painting Workshop hosted by Artworks in Big Rapids, MI
Publications
2021 www.southwestart.com/featured/21-under-31-anthony-m-cairo
2021 10th Annual Plein Air Salon Best Artist Under 30 (June/July issue)