SACRAMENTO, Calif. — After publishing more than a dozen coloring books aimed at adults since 2016, mixed-media artist Karen Sue Chen says she's taken on a new challenge — full-scale murals.
She painted her first one earlier this year on the side of an elementary school in the Oak Park neighborhood of Sacramento.
It was Chen's first step into a new creative project as she sets out to give back to the community she's called home the past nine years.
"I think one of the best ways I could give back to my community is through a mural because it's something so big the public can enjoy," she said.
Chen applied for a grant through Sacramento's Wide Open Walls mural program to start her first school-focused project.
Describing herself as a rookie compared to more seasoned muralists applying for the grant funding, Chen said she was surprised when her name came up — but she was off to work.
That's when she said she got a shocking phone call from the first school she was set to work with.
"The principal wrote to all the artists participating like, 'We're really excited for these murals. We actually don't have an art program'. I was like, 'What do you mean? That's crazy,'" she said.
After finishing the mural and gifting students with free coloring books, Chen said she was off to the next mural project with students at Hiram W. Johnson High School.
As Chen was getting ready to head off to Taiwan to visit family, there was one more mural she had to finish outside of Marie's Donuts in Land Park.
"A little history about my piece is, that illustration I painted up is actually from my (coloring book)," she told ABC10. "I really like taking ordinary objects and turning them into something. Like the first illustration I did was a juice carton. But it wasn't just a juice carton, it was like a juice carton filled with little bunnies."
Her imagination into the world of fantasy helps Chen channel her illustrative ideas into multi-yard long canvases. While she's painted solo, the Marie's Donuts project saw Chen inviting her friends to participate in the painting.
For a mural she has planned in May, Chen said she hopes to get the help of a few hundred kids from the community. The art piece is going to be at another Sacramento area school.
For her, it's the daily interactions she has while putting up murals that brings her the most joy.
"I actually have like these little kid followers now on my Instagram. They put me in a group chat and they like to send me pictures of stuff they colored — the cutest," Chen said. "I guess the message is just inspire, and to have a big imagination."
You can contact Karen Sue Chen and check out her work on sunshine-creative.com. Her social media is @karensuestudios
