Tensions ran extremely high, as students boycotted classes and even took over several campuses. At this time, Liao received an invitation from the Miami Museum of Contemporary Art to put on an exhibition. He decided then and there to relocate to the United States with his family, eventually settling in New York. He took an assistantship at the Pratt Graphics Center in exchange for free access to the studios and printmaking equipment.
1968 年，巴黎爆發政爭學潮，學生不僅罷課還霸佔學校，情勢極端混亂，此時美國邁阿密現代美術館發函邀請他開個展，廖修平當下決定帶著妻小舉家遷美，定居紐約，進入紐約布拉特 Pratt 版畫中心擔任助手，換取免費使用工作室的版畫設備印製作品，一方面學習絹印，一方面接觸其他版畫家，探索各種版畫技巧。