Who is Aida Cui? What is she? Aida Cui is everything she was not raised to be. She was raised to be a good Catholic girl of conservative parents, with the refinements and training provided by an exclusive school of girls run by French nuns for the upper crust of the Philippines. Given the social constraints of class at the time of her generation, formal training for a young woman who loved painting, was not an option. Aida graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Literature from the Assumption Convent of Makati, Philippines. Hers was a background of abundance and excess, filled with matching personalities, who now also people her canvases.
Aida has worn various hats during her search for personal and artistic identity. She has curated collections for Galeria Duemila in Manila, promoting contemporary art in the Philippines. She has managed a number of enterprises: Hutch and Reed Physical Fitness Center at the Mandarin Hotel, where she internalized an appreciation and understanding of body forms and motion. After relocating to San Francisco in 1983 (during which time she was known by her then married name, Aida Citti), she managed the Richard Simmons Anatomy Asylum. Following a growing real estate boom in San Francisco, she became a successful real estate agent. Aida has also served in management capacity for Comgenex Intetrnational, an international biotech company.
Having proven to herself that she could survive and prosper on her own merit, Aida began to devote serious time to her art. She attended private and group classes at the San Francisco School of Arts. In 2000, she was invited to present her work to the public in a solo exhibit at the TransAmerica Building, in San Francisco,CA. Aida moved shortly after to Sedona, Arizona, in order to paint full-time. She served as co-chair of the Sedona Visual Artists Coalition for a few years, and began to exhibit on several US and European cities. To accommodate her frequent travel, Aida moved to Miami. Aida Cui has exhibited in Miami, New York, Sedona and San Francisco. In Europe, she has exhibited in Basel, Budapest, Florence and Vienna. Her work is held by numerous collectors in the United States, Europe and Asia. And has been featured in various publications, including ARTnews. Bal Harbour, Florida is currently her home.
She accepts commissions including portrait commissions and may be contacted by email at aida@aidacui.com