Chen Qiang was born in Beijing in 1957, studied at the Central Academy of Fine Arts and went on to teach there through the mid-1980’s. He moved to the United States in 1986, living in both Laguna Beach and New York City, while exhibiting his oil paintings of Tibetan subjects internationally. 
In the 1990’s Chen Qiang became involved with filmmaking and multimedia projects. His most well-known project, Agepass, involved a presentation of his documentation of life along China’s famous Yellow River. It was comprised of photographs and artifacts, including large tanks of water from the river itself.
Tibetan Monk, C. 1980's
Oil on Canvas
38" x 44" (96.5cm x 111.8cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet, he felt as though he had returned home; like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Ballad, 1986
Oil on Canvas
38" x 44" (96.5cm x 111.8cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Ride, 1986
Oil on Canvas
38" x 44" (96.5cm x 111.8cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Watercolor, 1986
Watercolor on Paper
18" x 14" (45.7cm x 35.5cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Mother and Child, 1986
Oil on Canvas
38" x 44" (96.5cm x 111.8cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Horse and Rider, 1988
Oil on Canvas
32" x 32" (81.3cm x 81.3cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
Windy Gap, 1986
Oil on Canvas
38" x 44" (97cm x 112cm)About this work
Chen Qiang says that as an artist he had no real influence for his work until he went to Tibet, though he had already traveled to many other places throughout China. In Tibet he felt as though he had returned home, like it was his spiritual home. He says that the skies were so clear, and life was so real that he felt this place deep inside of him and he began to paint what he saw. Chen Qiang’s oil paintings of the people and landscape of Tibet, most of which were produced in the mid-1980s, are quite stylized and show a distinctly different approach to the medium of photography, that he utilizes in the work he produces today.
