Meet Jun Cen

We were lucky to catch up with Jun Cen recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jun, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

I was born and raised in China. From a young age, I have always known that I love to draw and that I have some talent for it. My older sister, who also loved to draw, first introduced me to the art. The time we spent creating our favorite cartoon characters together was unforgettable. However, as she grew older, she eventually stopped drawing. Although my enthusiasm persisted, no one around me suggested that making art could be anything more than just a hobby. I became the only kid who drew in my class and in my family. I began to seek an audience outside of my immediate circle. There were a few comic and animation-themed magazines at the time that had sections for art submissions. I started submitting my work to those magazines and was over the moon the first time I found out that my art had been accepted and published. Slowly, more acceptances followed. Eager to create and share more, I eventually branched out to the internet. Finding my own community online was incredibly exciting, as the lack of someone to share my enthusiasm with had sometimes made me feel alone. However, until I had to decide what I wanted to study in college, I was still just a kid who loved to draw but had no professional training. I had never dreamed I could pursue art as a career, nor had my family suggested I should try. In my senior year of high school, I felt gloomy knowing I was on a path to pursue English as my college major, which was not my genuine desire. The results of the college entrance examination were disappointing. One day, I returned to my high school to receive a physical copy of my exam results. After that, I went to a district in my city where many art training studios were located. I picked up a pamphlet on the street and headed to the studio it advertised. After a few introductions to the studio and the students’ work, I decided that I would start my training there and retake the college entrance exam the following year. This time, I wanted to be an art student. It was the first significant decision I made for myself, and it paid off. I excelled in the studio, where most of my peers had years of professional training. For the first time, I felt surrounded by people pursuing art, which made me more confident in my talent. Even though I hadn’t been trained previously, I somehow understood how to use art as an expressive voice, feeling less constrained by skills and techniques. With proper training, that voice eventually became more refined. This may seem like a personal struggle story with a happy ending; however, pursuing art as a career is a long journey of refinement and evolution filled with challenges. Whenever I feel stuck—which happens often—I never doubt that making art is one of the things I am most confident about.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

Jun Cen is a New York-based illustrator and animated short film director originally from China. He is a gold medalist in the Society of Illustrators Annual Awards. His work has been consistently recognized by The New York Times as some of the most memorable illustrations of the year. Jun’s clients include, but are not limited to, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, Bally, Burberry and Rimowa.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Curiosity, enthusiasm, and novelty are the three qualities I think are the most impactful. There are no easy answers. But perhaps surrounding yourself with people that share these qualities and be inspired by one another would be beneficial.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

My number one challenge might be overcoming my burnout and imposter syndrome. I work with an extensive range of clients. Each project I take on is uniquely challenging. For example, one day, I would be working on an editorial project that conceptualizes one of the theories of paralleled universes, and another day, I would be working on an illustration for an article about a vaccine that prevents drug addiction. It is fascinating to work on a wide range of subject matter, but it is also sometimes overwhelming. I think one of the challenges creatives have is that, unlike a lot of other jobs, our experience cannot always make our lives easier. The longer I work in the industry, the more I understand that consistent innovation is the key to the success of a long-lasting career. That was also the reason we artist chose this career to begin with. But in reality, even the most creative individuals have difficulty delivering their top performances all the time. Artist block is a chronic symptom. It is fulfilling each time I delivered a great work. But it also leads to another question: can I do it as good next time? And every time I take on a new job, I would have a window of horror of being an imposter at the early stage of the project. Things wouldn’t get better until the piece gets a bit more refined. I still struggle to find a remedy. Probably ideally, if I have a longer time to recharge between projects and the pay is a bit better so that I would not need to worry about financial pressure as much would ultimately help.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cenjun.com
• Instagram: @juncenart

Image Credits

Lisk Feng