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Irene Chan is a multidisciplinary artist who works conceptually in print media, papermaking, installation art, storytelling performance, and book arts on subjects of Taoism, personal immigrant narratives, and overlooked histories. Her artist books and works on paper have been exhibited internationally and held in 112 public collections including the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington DC, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum of American Art, NYC, The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Tate Modern, Victoria & Albert Museum, and the British Library in London. Chan established Ch’An (ch’ ahn) Press through which she has self-published prints and 44 artist books to date. She has received grants and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York Arts Council, Maryland State Arts Council, Washington D.C. Commission of the Arts and Humanities, and Erasmus+MobileUP. Additionally, she has been awarded fellowships to 20 artist residencies and has exhibited, performed, and lectured in 61 venues over the last decade.

In 2026, Chan completes her fellowship as a Fulbright Scholar, is nominated for the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) Women to Watch 2027 Exhibition, and is a semi-finalist for the 2026 MCBA Prize: An International Artist Book Award (Minnesota Center for Book Arts).

Irene Chan holds an M.F.A. with honors from the San Francisco Art Institute and a degree in architecture (BArch) with a Minor in English from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She has taught at universities across four continents: Australia (Sydney), Europe (Portugal and Romania), Asia (China and Taiwan), and North America (U.S.). Presently, she is a Professor of Art (Print and Intermedia Arts) and Affiliate Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), U.S.A.