Chen Chi-kwan (; 1921–2007) was a Taiwanese artist, architect, and educator, particularly for his paintings and architectural work for

Tunghai University Tunghai University (THU; ) is the oldest private university in Taiwan, established in 1955. It was founded by the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia (UBCHEA). It is located in Xitun District, Taichung, Taiwan. According to ''Tim ...

. He collaborated with

I.M. Pei Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners ( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...

to design the

Luce Memorial Chapel The Luce Memorial Chapel () is a Christian chapel on the campus of Tunghai University in Xitun District, Taichung, Taiwan. It was designed by architects I. M. Pei and Chi-kuan Chen. Name The chapel was named in honor of the Rev. Henry W. Luce, ...

on the university campus, a hallmark of mid-century modernist architecture completed in 1963.

Biography

Born in 1921 in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

(then known as Beiping), China. He attended Nanjing secondary school, Zhenjiang secondary school, and Zhongnan Middle School, National II. Chen's youth was strongly affected by China's War of Resistance against Japan and his family relocated in

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

, Sichuan Province. He studied architecture at the

Southeast University School of Architecture The Southeast University School of Architecture (SEU Arch, ) is one of the professional schools of Southeast University in Nanjing, China. Founded in 1927, SEU School of Architecture is the oldest school of architecture in China and one of the mos ...

(then known as Central University) and graduated with a BS degree in 1944. In 1944, he served as an interpreter in the China-Burma-India Theater of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1946, he served as a designer at Nanjing Jitai Architects. Chi-kwan studied at the University of Illinois from 1949 to 1951 with Walter Gropius and Architects Collaborative, graduating in 1949 with a M.A. degree in Architecture. In 1950, he took classes at

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

(UCLA) in the Department of Art. Walter Gropius, recommended him as a part-time teacher at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

(MIT), where he taught from 1952 until 1954. In collaboration with

I. M. Pei Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners ( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...

, co-designed

campus, Taiwan in 1954. He served as director for the Department of Architecture at

in 1960. Chi-kwan was involved in the design of the Portsmouth Square pedestrian bridge in

Chinatown, San Francisco The Chinatown centered on Grant Avenue and Stockton Street (San Francisco), Stockton Street in San Francisco, California, () is the oldest Chinatown in North America and one of the largest Han Chinese, Chinese ethnic enclave, enclaves outside As ...

. Chi-kwan often painted in watercolor and would borrow some aspects from traditional

Chinese painting Chinese painting () is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as ''guó huà'' (), meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western style ...

but apply it to modern themes or Western style line work, many of his works were abstract or referencing small landscapes. His paintings are in the permanent collection at various museums including

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

Harvard Art Museums The Harvard Art Museums are part of Harvard University and comprise three museums: the Fogg Museum (established in 1895), the Busch-Reisinger Museum (established in 1903), and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (established in 1985), and four research ...

, the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, among others. In 2004, Chen was one of the recipients of Taiwan's prestigious National Award for Arts. Judges said the "decorative colors, architectural lines and mystical spaces" in his paintings "inspired us to see our surroundings in a new light." To commemorate the 90th anniversary of his birth, a selection of Chen's paintings were displayed at the

National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum (; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: Kwet-li̍p kù-kiung pok-vu̍t-yèn), is a museum in Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan). It has a permanent collection of nearly 700,000 pieces of Chinese artifacts and artworks, many of which wer ...

in Taipei. He died in 2007 in Burlingame, California. In 2007, an asteroid, ''236851 Chenchikwan'', was named in honor of Chen by its discoverers, C.S. Lin and Q.Z. Ye.

Key dates

* *1969, planned the overall design of the campus of the National Central University in

Chungli Zhongli District () is a district in Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Zhongli is spelled variously as ''Jungli'', ''Jongli'', ''Jhongli'' or ''Chungli'' on railway stations, bus stops and road signs. Historically, the city is the site of the Zhongli Inciden ...

. *1980, appointed Dean of Engineering at

Ren Donghai University Ren or REN may refer to: Abbreviations * Orenburg Tsentralny Airport, IATA code REN, civil airport in Russia * Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), Portuguese company * Renanthera, abbreviated as Ren, orchid genus * Ringer equivalence number (RE ...

References

External links

Chi-Kwan Chen papers, 1946-1972
from Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Example of artwork by Chi-kwan
on Artnet.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Chen, Chi-kwan Taiwanese architects Chinese architects 1921 births 2007 deaths Illinois State University alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty People from Burlingame, California People from Beijing Taiwanese expatriates in the United States