Sean Chen, born in Hangzhou, China, hails from a scholarly family with deep cultural heritage. On his mother’s side, he is a descendant of Zhu Xi, the Neo-Confucian master of the Song dynasty; on his father’s side, he traces lineage to the renowned Ming-Qing dynasty painter Chen Hongshou. Deeply influenced by Confucian philosophy and traditional Chinese culture from an early age, Sean was unable to enter formal art school due to severe color vision deficiency. Undeterred, he pursued his artistic development through self-education.

In 1988, Sean immigrated to New Zealand, where he later completed postgraduate studies at Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland. Over his 26 years in New Zealand, he focused on interpreting local landscapes and cultural landmarks through painting. His unique perspective on Auckland and New Zealand landmarks was featured in two published art monographs authored by respected critic Warwick Brown: Sean Chen Auckland Landmarks (2009) and Sean Chen New Zealand Landmarks (2011). Over 300 of his works have been sold across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and the United States.

In 1990, he created the pop art piece The Soy King, a cultural commentary rooted in his immigrant experience. In 2000, he completed the land art installation 56 Dragon Totems, a significant public art project in Auckland.

Upon returning to China, Sean held solo exhibitions at prestigious institutions such as the National Art Museum of China, the National Museum of China, and Today Art Museum in Beijing. He has participated in major contemporary art fairs including Art Beijing and the Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair. Notably, when his solo exhibition opened at the National Museum of China, then Prime Minister of New Zealand, John Key, attended the opening ceremony — a rare and symbolic moment in international cultural exchange.

In 2018, Sean became the only Chinese artist selected under China’s national high-level talent program, and was appointed Associate Dean of a branch at the Academy of Arts & Design, Tsinghua University. He later returned to his hometown and was appointed Dean of the “Sean Chen College of Art and Design” at Zhejiang A&F University (Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Jiyang College), which was named in his honor.

Among his notable public art projects in China is A Pond of Lotus Leaves, a large-scale mural installed at a Hangzhou Metro Station, often referred to as “the most beautiful subway mural in China.”

In 2022, he was invited to create New Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, a monumental painting for the Hangzhou Asian Games. He also produced a high-tech 3D immersive video version of the work, exhibited in the Main Media Center, which bridged traditional landscape painting with cutting-edge digital technology.

Upon returning to China, Sean did not pursue conventional directions in contemporary Chinese art. Instead, he continued developing the Landmark China project, which he began in New Zealand. This effort evolved into what he defines as “Chen’s Aesthetic Expressionism,” an artistic vision that spans painting, installation, sculpture, AI-driven digital art, performance, and landscape design. His work emphasizes the integration of art into public space and everyday life.

Sean Chen is widely recognized as:

• “The Godfather of Chinese Color”
• “Father of Chinese Color Aesthetics”
• “Representative Figure of Chinese Color Theory”
• “Founding Pioneer of Contemporary Chinese Color Aesthetics”

He is regarded as one of the most influential Chinese artists of his generation, blending Eastern philosophy with global visual language and using color as a medium of cultural identity and national expression.