Kao's life is not known other than his signature of 'Kao' on his work, but there is a widely-accepted theory which considers him as the same person as Sonen KAO, a Zen priest who went to Yuan.
可翁については作品に「可翁」の印が残るのみで伝記は不明だが、元に渡航した禅僧の可翁宗然と同人とする説が有力である。