Sichen Grace “SG” Chen is a painter/illustrator, artist-researcher, and educator based on the unceded, traditional, and ancestral territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) First Nations, also known as Vancouver. Her practice spans between commercial illustration, gallery exhibitions, public art, and community engagement. Together with students, she offers a holistic curriculum that combines inquiry-based learning, conceptual rigour, and skill-building for all ages. She is passionate about investigating interpersonal and ecological relationships through saturated colour and layered textures. She is the co-founder and creative director of Atelier Aloera, an arts-based climate research and social practice collective located in the Lower Mainland, BC.

Her research centers on water and its connection to painting, climate change, membranes, and embodiment. Using additive and subtractive painting methods, such as glazing, staining, and wiping with rags, her paintings possess chromatic depth and luminosity through various thin, translucent layers of paint. This approach influences her illustrated works, which explore memory, psychology, environmental change, and everyday life. Beyond the classroom, Chen collaborates with fellow artists, scientists, climate activists, and community leaders to synthesize interdisciplinary projects supporting urban waterways.

Chen holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and an MFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design (ECU). She has received awards from American Illustration (AI-AP), Society of Illustrators (SOI), and Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles (SILA). Her works have been exhibited in galleries throughout British Columbia and across the United States. In addition, she acknowledges and is thankful for the financial support provided by The Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation towards her continued research-creation.