Chinn Yuen Yuey

Appraisal and Market Value of Chinn Yuen Yuey   

Also known by his Chinese name Chen Yuanrui, he is a painter, graphic artist, and art teacher of Chinese origin, born on December 24, 1922, in Guangdong Province (Canton), China. He emigrated to the United States in 1936 and pursued art studies at Columbia University, where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts and then a Master of Fine Arts.   

Throughout his career, he received several prestigious fellowships, including a Fulbright Fellowship to Italy (1954–1955) and a John Hay Whitney Fellowship (1956–1957). He exhibited his works in numerous cities around the world, including Paris, Florence, Berlin, and Zurich. His works are included in institutional collections, notably those of Columbia University and the National Museum of Stockholm.  

How can you recognize a work by Chinn Yuen Yuey?

To recognize Chinn Yuen Yuey’s works, one must observe several specific artistic criteria: a spatial composition often based on large, simplified areas of color; soft yet assertive contours; a palette dominated by warm, earthy tones punctuated by vivid contrasts; and a semi-abstract treatment of forms. His compositions frequently reveal a quest for balance between areas of color and negative space, while his brushwork retains a calligraphic quality inherited from the Chinese tradition. 

Chinn Yuen Yuey on the Art Market: The Artist’s Market Value

Chinn Yuen Yuey is a Chinese-American artist associated with lyrical abstraction and the School of Paris. His market value remains relatively low-profile but stable, with auction prices generally ranging from a few hundred euros for works on paper to over €10,000 for major oil-on-canvas paintings from the 1950s and 1960s.