{{Short description|Chinese American contemporary artist}} {{Infobox artist | known_for = Painting | birth_date = 1992 | birth_place = Hong Kong | image = Susan Chen Artist.jpg | caption = Chen in 2021 | alma_mater = Brown University (B.A.) <br>Columbia University (M.F.A.) | website = {{URL|https://www.susanmbchen.com/}} }} '''Susan Chen''' (born 1992) is a Chinese American artist and painter in New York City.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barragán |first=Carlos |date=August 11, 2023 |title=Visual Artist Alumna Susan Chen '22 Unveils Hand Sanitizer's Comedy and Tragedy in New Exhibition {{!}} School of the Arts |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/visual-artist-alumna-susan-chen-22-unveils-hand-sanitizers-comedy-and-tragedy-new-exhibition |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=arts.columbia.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mantha |first=Priyanka |date=2022-09-26 |title=On the Cover of New York Magazine: The New Asian America |url=https://nymag.com/press/2022/09/on-the-cover-of-new-york-magazine-the-new-asian-america.html |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=New York Press Room |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wong |first=Harley |date=2021-05-20 |title=16 Rising Artists of the Asian Diaspora in the United States |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-16-rising-artists-asian-diaspora |access-date=2023-11-16 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref> Her portrait paintings survey communities, exploring topics on identity, the psychology of race, and social change.<ref name="Wong-2022">{{Cite web |last=Wong |first=Mimi |date=2022-11-15 |title=How Susan Chen Went from Landscape Painter to Empathetic Portraitist |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-artsy-vanguard-2022-susan-chen |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wong |first=Harley |date=2020-09-23 |title=Susan Chen's Portraits of Asian Americans Reckon with a History of Exclusion |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-susan-chens-portraits-asian-americans-reckon-history-exclusion |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref>
Chen received her M.F.A. from Columbia University, and her B.A. from Brown University.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barragán |first=Carlos |date=August 11, 2023 |title=Visual Artist Alumna Susan Chen '22 Unveils Hand Sanitizer's Comedy and Tragedy in New Exhibition {{!}} School of the Arts |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/visual-artist-alumna-susan-chen-22-unveils-hand-sanitizers-comedy-and-tragedy-new-exhibition |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=arts.columbia.edu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sheets |first=Hilarie M. |date=2020-05-19 |title=Newly Minted Artists, Facing a Precarious Future, Take Action |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/19/arts/design/art-schools-covid.html |access-date=2023-11-15 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
== Work == Susan Chen's early work focused on highlighting stories within the Asian diaspora and Asian American community. In 2020, Chen presented her inaugural solo exhibition at Meredith Rosen Gallery post-graduate school, receiving a review from art critic John Yau titled "A Powerful Debut."<ref name="Yau-2020">{{Cite web |last=Yau |first=John |date=2020-08-22 |title=A Powerful Debut |url=http://hyperallergic.com/583611/susan-chen-on-longing-at-meredith-rosen-gallery/ |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref> The exhibition featured thirteen paintings depicting Asian Americans from Chen's neighborhood and online connections, including portraits of family and friends, self-portraits, and a group of Asian American students on Columbia University's campus.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Laster |first=Paul |date=2020-09-25 |title=Reality Rendered Raw: 6 New York Solo Shows {{!}} Art & Object |url=https://www.artandobject.com/news/reality-rendered-raw-6-new-york-solo-shows |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=www.artandobject.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Goldstein |first=Caroline |date=2020-08-21 |title=Susan Chen's Richly Layered Portraits of Asian Americans Make Their New York Gallery Debut—See Images Here |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/susan-chen-at-meredith-rosen-1902984 |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Goodman |first=Jonathan |date=2020-09-26 |title=Susan Chen: On Longing at Meredith Rosen Gallery through September 26, 2020 |url=https://www.tusslemagazine.com/susan-chen |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=TUSSLE |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Deng |first=Audrey |date=August 17, 2020 |title=Recent Alumna Susan MB Chen '20 in First Solo Exhibition at Meredith Rosen Gallery {{!}} School of the Arts |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/recent-alumna-susan-mb-chen-20-first-solo-exhibition-meredith-rosen-gallery |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=arts.columbia.edu}}</ref> The paintings explored topics related to the Asian American diaspora, including stereotypes, the model minority myth, racial melancholia, and the complexities of assimilation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ong |first=Jyni |date=2020-08-18 |title=What does it mean to be an Asian American today? Painter Susan Chen explores the multi-dimensional identity |url=https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/susan-chen-paintings-art-180820 |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=itsnicethat.com |language=en}}</ref>
Her exhibition 'I Am Not A Virus' at Night Gallery in 2021 featured a series of seventeen collaborative Zoom portraits reflecting on the anti-Asian hate crimes that occurred across America during the pandemic.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kand |first=Zara |date=2021-10-04 |title=Susan Chen: 'I Am Not A Virus' |url=https://artnowla.com/2021/10/04/susan-chen-i-am-not-a-virus/ |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Art Now LA |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisher |first=Catherine |date=2021-10-06 |title=Alumna Susan Chen '20 in Solo Show at Night Gallery {{!}} School of the Arts |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/alumna-susan-chen-20-solo-show-night-gallery-0 |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=arts.columbia.edu}}</ref>
Susan Chen's artwork, titled 'I Am Not the Kung Flu,' was featured on the cover of ''New York Magazine'' from September 26–October 9, 2022 in the issue, ''"At Home in Asian America: Who Are We Becoming?''".<ref name="Mantha-2022">{{Cite web |last=Mantha |first=Priyanka |date=2022-09-26 |title=On the Cover of New York Magazine: The New Asian America |url=https://nymag.com/press/2022/09/on-the-cover-of-new-york-magazine-the-new-asian-america.html |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=New York Press Room |language=en}}</ref> The piece, originally part of Chen's 2021 exhibition 'I Am Not a Virus,' is one of several paintings created by Chen over Zoom during the pandemic. The self-portrait depicts the artist wearing a mask, a post-vaccine Band-Aid, Zoom emoticons, and items associated with self-defense, including pepper sprays, a taser, pepper gel gun, a whistle, and a Feng Shui Bagua mirror.<ref name="Mantha-2022"/>
In 2022, Chen collaborated with New York City Chinatown community groups, including Chinatown Block Watch<ref>{{Cite web |last=Liu |first=Jasmine |date=2022-06-23 |title=Asian Women and Nonbinary Artists Paint Their Major Feelings |url=http://hyperallergic.com/739334/asian-women-and-nonbinary-artists-paint-their-major-feelings/ |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Choo-2022">{{Cite web |last=Choo |first=Diane |date=2022-09-08 |title=Artist Profile: New York City Painter Susan Chen Shares Faces of Asian-American Life |url=https://asiansoutloud.com/artist-profile-new-york-city-painter-susan-chen-shares-faces-of-asian-american-life/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Asians Out Loud |language=en-US}}</ref> and a group from Chinatown's non-profit organization Apex for Youth to document them into oil painting group portraits. The painting ''Chinatown Block Watch'' (2022) was displayed at Jeffrey Deitch gallery as part of the exhibition 'Wonder Women,' curated by Kathy Huang.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Liu |first=Jasmine |date=2022-06-23 |title=Asian Women and Nonbinary Artists Paint Their Major Feelings |url=http://hyperallergic.com/739334/asian-women-and-nonbinary-artists-paint-their-major-feelings/ |access-date=2023-11-19 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref> The latter painting was exhibited at The Aldrich Museum in the feminist exhibition, "52 Artists: A Feminist Milestone," curated by Amy Smith-Stewart.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cascone |first=Sarah |date=2021-10-13 |title=The Aldrich Museum Is Updating a Landmark Feminist Art Show From 1971 With a New Generation of Women Artists |url=https://news.artnet.com/news/aldridge-feminist-milestone-2020011 |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Binlot |first=Ann |date=2022-06-07 |title=Revisiting a Groundbreaking Show for Feminist Art |url=https://www.thecut.com/2022/06/look-inside-52-artists-a-feminist-milestone.html |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=The Cut |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Keenan |first=Annabel |date=2022-06-06 |title=A Watershed Feminist Exhibition Is Reimagined at The Aldrich |url=https://www.culturedmag.com/article/2022/06/06/a-watershed-feminist-exhibition-is-reimagined-at-the-aldrich |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=culturedmag.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sheets |first=Hilarie M. |date=2022-04-27 |title=Revisiting a Groundbreaking Show of Feminist Art |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/27/arts/design/aldrich-feminist-52-artists.html |access-date=2023-11-14 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
In 2023, Chen presented a series of Purell bottle still lifes at Rachel Uffner Gallery.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Keenan |first=Annabel |date=2023-08-09 |title=OUTSIDE LA: Susan Chen |url=https://artillerymag.com/outside-la-susan-chen/ |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Artillery Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Marple |first=Mieke |year=2023 |title=Susan Chen: Purell Night and Day |url=https://whitehotmagazine.com/articles/susan-chen-purell-night-day/5925 |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art |language=en}}</ref> The show featured eleven works, including two Purell Clocks in soft pastels and oil paintings and charcoal drawings of Purell bottles. In John Yau's exhibition review titled, "The Many Lives of a Purell Bottle," comparisons were drawn between her drawings and the style of Philip Guston.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yau |first=John |date=2023-08-07 |title=The Many Lives of a Purell Bottle |url=http://hyperallergic.com/837239/the-many-lives-of-a-purell-bottle/ |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref> During the exhibition, a triptych of her paintings were stolen from the gallery in an art heist.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Armstrong |first=Annie |date=2023-08-17 |title=A Star JTT Artist Finds a New Home, Rachel Uffner Gallery Gets Heisted on the Lower East Side, and More Juicy Art World Gossip |url=https://news.artnet.com/market/a-star-jtt-artist-finds-a-new-home-and-more-juicy-art-world-gossip-2351060 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref>
Susan Chen's 2024 solo exhibition "''Plan B''" at Rachel Uffner Gallery showcased the artist's debut ceramics alongside six large-scale group portraits. The paintings were created through live portrait-painting sessions with 39 individuals, reflecting Chen's commitment to community engagement. The works addressed various topics from personal to political, including women's reproductive rights and activism. Chen's playful yet thought-provoking social commentary received positive reviews. In a Whitewall Magazine review, art critic Sarah Bochicchio highlighted the effectiveness of Chen's ceramic installations, including oversized Purell bottles, Plan B and Tampax boxes, in conveying the urgency of everyday items. Bochicchio also highlighted the poignant depiction of the aftermath of Roe v. Wade's overturning in Chen's paintings, emphasizing the importance of support networks and shared experiences among women. The exhibition was profiled in Artnet's "Up Next" column by Katie White and listed among the "8 Shows by Women Artists to Watch This Month" in March 2024 by Cultured Magazine.<ref name="Bochicchio-2024">{{Cite web |last=Bochicchio |first=Sarah |date=2024-04-11 |title=Susan Chen, When Plan B is Plan A |url=https://whitewall.art/art/susan-chen-when-plan-b-is-plan-a/ |access-date=2024-05-05 |website=Whitewall |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Article |first=Katie White ShareShare This |date=2024-03-28 |title=Artist Susan Chen Paints Expressive Portraits of Communities of Women |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/susan-chen-up-next-2459971 |access-date=2024-05-05 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Evan">{{Cite web |last=Evan |first=Pricco |title=Juxtapoz Magazine - Susan Chen: Plan B @ Rachel Uffner Gallery, NYC |url=https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/installation/susan-chen-plan-b-rachel-uffner-gallery-nyc/ |access-date=2024-05-05 |website=www.juxtapoz.com |language=en-gb}}</ref>
=== Influences === In Chen's painting, ''Streetcars of Desires'' (2020), she references some of her early influences by incorporating the surnames of artists into mini boxcars. These artists include her professors Richard Hull, Gregory Amenoff, Susanna Coffey, Aliza Nisenbaum, and painters well known in art history like Hockney, Matisse, Bonnard, Burchfield, Soutine, and Le Pho.<ref name="Yau-2020"/> Chen appreciates the still lifes and flower paintings of Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin and Lê Phổ.<ref name="Wong-2022"/> She briefly worked as Shara Hughes's artist assistant in 2016.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wong |first=Harley |date=2020-09-23 |title=Susan Chen's Portraits of Asian Americans Reckon with a History of Exclusion |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-susan-chens-portraits-asian-americans-reckon-history-exclusion |access-date=2023-11-14 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref>
=== Recognition === The artist has received various recognitions for her work, including being listed as a Forbes 30 Under 30 2022 Art & Style honoree,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sternlicht |first=Alexandra |date=2021-10-31 |title=Susan Chen, 29, Artist - 2021-12-01 - Forbes 30 Under 30 2022 - Art & Style |url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/61a6674fc9fb30bf6703d8c8/susan-chen-29-artist/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> inclusion in the Artsy Vanguard 2022 list,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Westall |first=Mark |date=2022-11-16 |title=Artsy has revealed its 2022 list of the next big names in art. |url=https://fadmagazine.com/2022/11/16/artsy-has-revealed-its-2022-list-of-the-next-big-names-in-art/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=FAD Magazine |language=en-GB}}</ref> an Artist-in-Residence at Silver Art Projects at the World Trade Center (2021–2022),<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brandon |first=Elissaveta M. |date=2022-06-29 |title='You're on top of the world': Inside 4 artists' studios on the 28th floor of the World Trade Center |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90765132/youre-on-top-of-the-world-inside-4-artists-studios-on-the-28th-floor-of-the-world-trade-center}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Duncan |first=Michelle |title=Prime Space, Visibility, and Community |url=https://metropolismag.com/profiles/prime-space-visibility-and-community/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Metropolis |language=en-US}}</ref> and receiving the Fall 2020 Hopper Prize, which was juried by Christine Koppes and Jade Powers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fall 2020 Grant Winners & Finalists |url=https://hopperprize.org/fall-2020-grant-winners-finalists/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=The Hopper Prize |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Choo-2022"/>
In 2025, Chen was awarded a Creative Capital Grant, one of 15 Visual Arts recipients among 50 national awardees selected from 5,653 applications. The selection process involved extensive reviews by 120 industry leaders and concluded with discipline-specific final panels.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nayyar |first=Rhea |date=2025-01-21 |title=Creative Capital Awards $2.45M to 55 Artists |url=https://hyperallergic.com/984688/creative-capital-awards-millions-to-55-artists/ |access-date=2025-02-13 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rabb |first=Maxwell |date=2025-01-21 |title=Creative Capital names 55 artists for its 2025 awards. |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-creative-capital-names-55-artists-2025-awards |access-date=2025-02-13 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref>
== Collectors and market == Susan Chen's early collectors include museum board members Pamela and David Hornik,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carter |first=Lee |date=2023-08-14 |title=What I Buy and Why: Bay Area Fixtures Pamela and David Hornik on Supporting Contemporary Art—With the Help of Their Dogs |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/what-i-buy-and-why-pamela-david-hornik-2348688 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref> Carla Shen,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lesser |first=Casey |date=2021-03-22 |title=Inside My Collection: Carla Shen |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-inside-collection-carla-shen |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref> Joel Lubin,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harrelson |first=Sarah |date=2021-12-01 |title=CAA's Joel Lubin's Hollywood Home Is an Emerging Artworks Jewel Box |url=https://www.culturedmag.com/article/2021/12/02/caas-joel-lubins-hollywood-home-is-an-emerging-artworks-jewel-box |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=www.culturedmag.com |language=en}}</ref> and Italian collectors behind The Underdog Collection.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dozier |first=Ayanna |date=2023-03-29 |title=Inside Underdog Collection's Collaborative Approach to Collecting Emerging Art |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-inside-underdog-collections-collaborative-approach-collecting-emerging-art |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref> In the artist's auction debut at Phillips New Now in New York on March 8, 2023<ref>{{Cite web |last=Westall |first=Mark |date=2023-02-26 |title=Phillips' New Now in New York - now. |url=https://fadmagazine.com/2023/02/26/phillips-new-now-in-new-york-now/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=FAD Magazine |language=en-GB}}</ref> the artwork sold for $35,560, exceeding its estimate.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kakar |first=Arun |date=2023-03-31 |title=Standout Sales from the March 2023 Auctions |url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-standout-sales-march-2023-auctions |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artsy |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Cascone |first=Sarah |date=2023-03-09 |title=Art Industry News: Sotheby's and Dmitry Rybolovlev Will Come to the Table on Art Fraud Case + Other Stories |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/art-industry-news-march-9-2023-2267814 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref> Her debut solo exhibitions in New York and Los Angeles were sold out.<ref name="Wong-2022"/>
== Solo exhibitions ==
* 2026: ''Old Cape Cod'' at Night Gallery <ref>{{Cite web |last=Storer |first=Abraham |date=2026-01-22 |title=A Fresh Encounter |url=https://provincetownindependent.org/arts-minds/2026/01/21/a-fresh-encounter/ |access-date=2026-01-28 |website=The Provincetown Independent |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Charles |date=2026-01-23 |title=Susan Chen and the Old Cape Cod - The Unibrow |url=https://the-unibrow.com/daily-brows/susan-chen-and-the-old-cape-cod |access-date=2026-01-28 |website=the-unibrow.com |language=en}}</ref> * 2024: ''Plan B'' at Rachel Uffner Gallery <ref name="Evan" /><ref name="Bochicchio-2024" /> * 2023: ''Purell Night & Day'' at Rachel Uffner Gallery<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Di Liscia |first1=Valentina |last2=Bishara |first2=Hakim |last3=Vartanian |first3=Hrag |date=2023-07-11 |title=15 Art Shows to See in New York This July |url=http://hyperallergic.com/831766/15-art-shows-to-see-in-new-york-july-2023/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Marple |first=Mieke |date=August 2023 |title=Susan Chen: Purell Night and Day |url=https://whitehotmagazine.com/articles/susan-chen-purell-night-day/5925 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Yau |first=John |date=2023-08-07 |title=The Many Lives of a Purell Bottle |url=http://hyperallergic.com/837239/the-many-lives-of-a-purell-bottle/ |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Hyperallergic |language=en-US}}</ref> * 2021: ''I Am Not A Virus'' at Night Gallery<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisher |first=Catherine |date=2021-10-06 |title=Alumna Susan Chen '20 in Solo Show at Night Gallery {{!}} School of the Arts |url=https://arts.columbia.edu/news/alumna-susan-chen-20-solo-show-night-gallery-0 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=arts.columbia.edu}}</ref> * 2020: ''On Longing'' at Meredith Rosen Gallery<ref>{{Cite web |last=Goldstein |first=Caroline |date=2020-08-21 |title=Susan Chen's Richly Layered Portraits of Asian Americans Make Their New York Gallery Debut—See Images Here |url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/susan-chen-at-meredith-rosen-1902984 |access-date=2023-11-15 |website=Artnet News |language=en-US}}</ref>
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == * [https://www.susanmbchen.com Susan Chen's Website] {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Susan}} Category:1992 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century American painters Category:21st-century American women painters Category:American women of Asian descent Category:Brown University alumni Category:Chinese emigrants to the United States Category:Columbia University alumni Category:Hong Kong painters Category:Painters from New York (state)