An Inspired Chat with Amelia Chen of San Francisco

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Amelia Chen. Check out our conversation below.

Hi Amelia, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
I have a sweet cat named Yumi, and she’s been by my side for nine wonderful years. She’s not just a pet—she’s truly my best companion.

Earlier this year, we set out on a long journey together that lasted almost 26 hours in total, including flights and road transfers. I was nervous at first, unsure how she’d handle such a tiring trip. But Yumi amazed me. She stayed calm and curious the whole way, quietly observing her surroundings with those bright eyes of hers.

Instead of panicking, she even greeted people at the airport, melting hearts with her gentle, fearless charm. Watching her interact with strangers so gracefully made me incredibly proud—it felt like she was reminding me that every adventure, no matter how long, can be embraced with courage.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a motion graphic designer and illustrator—a New Yorker for the past ten years who just recently moved to the Bay Area to start a new chapter. Though who knows, maybe I’ll be moving back soon—it’s all part of the adventure.

Over the years I’ve been lucky to work on ads and illustration projects for brands like Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta, and many more. My work has spanned everything from brand illustration and packaging to experiments with AI/AR design.

What keeps my work exciting is finding a balance between big brand projects and personal pursuits. I love mentoring younger students on their design portfolios, helping them discover their own voice and confidence. Outside of design, I’m always chasing inspiration through photography, travel, and food. I’m a big foodie who loves exploring hidden gems everywhere I go, and I enjoy sharing my life experiences and travel guides with others. I also spend time volunteering at local shelters—being around animals, helping them find homes, or simply keeping them company brings me a lot of joy.

At the heart of my creative practice, I’m drawn to playful, emotionally rich, and unexpected ideas. I want my work to carry feeling, to express who I am, and to spark a sense of connection with people. For me, design isn’t just about how things look—it’s about how they make you feel.

Seeing the world makes life feel free and beautiful. Keeping things simple and joyful—that, to me, is the greatest happiness.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
For me, life has always been a journey of experiences rather than destinations. I love my work and the thrill of creating, but I’ve come to realize that what I treasure most is my health, my sense of wonder, and the quiet joy of living.

This year I made myself a promise: to see more of the world. In Japan, I saw Mount Fuji—quiet, timeless, and majestic. In Yunnan, I woke to the shimmer of tropical rain, hiked through lush valleys, and watched dawn break over snowcapped mountains, fiery orange spilling across a sky so wide it felt endless. In Xi’an, the Terracotta Warriors stretched before me, row upon row, their stillness heavy with centuries of forgotten stories.

Montreal charmed me with its French rhythms, cobblestone streets, and café warmth. And in Alaska, I set foot on a glacier—an ancient landscape of ice that creaked and sighed beneath my boots. There, surrounded by nothing but blue and silence, I felt both tiny and vividly alive.

Each of these journeys carved something new into me. They’ve taught me to move through life with curiosity, to embrace the unfamiliar, and to see beauty in contrasts—stillness and motion, history and now, the vast and the intimate. To me, that’s the greatest gift: to keep discovering, to keep feeling, and to let the world change you.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
The fear that has held me back the most is the feeling of having no clear direction—of not knowing what the next stop in my life should be. It can feel unsettling when I look around and see friends settling down with steady jobs, homes, and routines, while I’m still searching, still moving.

But the truth is, I’ve never been someone who can sit still. When I stop, I feel a kind of emptiness. What excites me, what keeps me alive, are new experiences—discovering unfamiliar places, diving into new ideas, meeting different people. For me, not having a fixed destination is both my greatest fear and my greatest freedom. It pushes me to keep exploring, to keep chasing the unknown, and to find meaning in motion itself.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What’s a belief you used to hold tightly but now think was naive or wrong?
A belief I once held was that the world was bathed in light. I grew up in a happy family where everything felt safe, hopeful, and full of warmth—I thought goodness was the natural order of things.

But as I stepped into adulthood, I realized how naïve that was. The world is not only light; it is a constant struggle between light and shadow. Peace is not effortless—it is fragile, and often fleeting. Even on the same earth, humans find it hard to live in harmony. And for the voiceless animals, simply carving out a place to exist beside us is already a battle.

This realization was sobering, yet it reshaped how I see the world. I no longer believe in a simple, eternal brightness—but I believe in carrying sparks of it. To bring warmth, to protect, to create moments of tenderness amid the dark. That, to me, is a more honest kind of hope.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. If immortality were real, what would you build?
If immortality were real, I wouldn’t dream of building empires or monuments. I would build a way of living—a home and a life I would actually want to inhabit forever. A peaceful place without constant worries about tomorrow.

There would be a garden where I could grow my own vegetables, a rhythm of life simple and self-sustained. And alongside it, I would create a sanctuary for animals without homes, a safe place where they could live freely and without fear. To me, that would be the kind of eternity worth choosing: not grand, but gentle. A life rooted in care, simplicity, and peace.

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Amelia Chen

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