About

Chien Nguyen is a Minnesota-based artist working primarily in graphite and colored pencil. His portraits chase likeness first — the specific tilt of a head, the exact weight of an expression — while his illustration work leans into fantasy and pop culture, often reworking familiar faces into stranger territory.

He enjoys technical challenges like capturing someone’s exact likeness, but at the same time enjoys creating stories and new worlds in his illustrations.

Most pieces begin traditionally on paper before any digital touch-up, and the sketchbook is never far from reach.