Today we’d like to introduce you to Chloe Chen.
Hi Chloe, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was born in Shanghai, China, and lived there for more than 20 years. In 2019, I decided to study abroad in the U.S. At first, it was a difficult time, I was struggling and felt alienated in the city, but then gradually I made friends and we traveled near half U.S on the vacation.
Photography and drawing became the best way for recording my memories. My photography has a different feeling of personal intimacy than my other artworks. It objectively records the time, space, and memory that I am deeply impressed by. My drawing and ceramics works, on the other hand, are more subjective and thematic to reflect restrictions imposed by public opinion and conventions, and my particular cultural background surrounding women’s sexuality.
So photography is my way of escaping reality, as is traveling. In 2021, I got an M.F.A degree in painting and drawing in fine art at Pratt Institute in New York City. Now I am an art educator and artist who focuses on large ink drawings, ceramics, printmaking, and photography.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Being an artist is not easy. I was in art administration in the non-profit art organization and art foundation in NYC after graduation, and also as an illustrator before I came to the U.S.
Now I am an artist and art educator. It is not easy to balance the time between work and the artist’s career, and how to maximize your time after working to make art. What I can do is the slow and steady deal with the struggles.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As I mentioned before, I am an artist and art educator. My work involves large ink drawings, ceramics, printmaking, and photography. As an Asian woman artist, my drawing and ceramics reflect restrictions imposed by public opinion and conventions, and my particular cultural background surrounding women’s sexuality.
In my large ink drawings, the scale of the works is usually the real human size, and the action of repeated dots I use is to express the relationship between women and labor, which is relatively heavier for me, like a process of meditation and introspection. By 2022, my works are exhibited and collected internationally in the USA, South Korea, and China. Drawing of mine is more static, while photography for me is dynamic.
My photography is separated from my art and closer to my personal life, I occasionally post photos of my travels around the world on Instagram and other social media as a way of documenting my life. I can’t compare which art style I am more proud of, because they are all forms of expressing and conveying my personal thoughts. But whether it is drawing, ceramics, or photography, for me, it is the passion of life.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I was always nervous about networking but finding a mentor will increase the potential professional future opportunities and reliable reference letter. I am glad to meet my mentors when I was in graduate school which gives me many opportunities no matter in exhibitions or internships.
I think the advice for finding a mentor is to consider if the mentor a good fit for you first, and figure out what is your goal. Another piece of advice I learned from my mentor in graduate school is always prepare the elevator pitch which is a great help.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chloechen.portfoliobox.net/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chloeolhchen/
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/chloechenstudio/
