Bowen Shen has been drawn to the visual arts for as long as she can remember. Born and raised in China, she recalls being a doodler at a very young age, and one of her earliest memories is of drawing on the back of her mother’s discarded architectural blueprints, which she considered to be the “perfect canvas” then.

“I was always drawn to the visual arts,” she says, “experimenting with different art mediums and dreaming of becoming a professional painter.”

As an adult, she spent three years in Melbourne, Australia, and obtained a Bachelor of Communication Design to channel her artistic talent into more practical uses. During her studies, she focused on a foundation in graphic design. It was also during this time that she found her interest in the digital side of design.

“I started with creative coding and enjoyed making fun interactive art with code,” she says. “It led me to explore web development and UI/UX design as well.”

Bowen would eventually move to New York to pursue her studies in Interaction Design. It was when she obtained her master’s degree at the School of Visual Arts that her professional world opened up before her.

Bowen currently works as a product designer at Goldman Sachs—the leading banking and investment management firm. Her role is to help shape the user experience of Goldman Sachs’ consumer-facing business, Marcus by Goldman Sachs. Dealing with the complexity of financial concepts may sound like a daunting task, but Bowen’s job is to ensure that the user experience is not only compliant with industry regulations but also to establish trust and security for its users while meeting the business’s needs.

“My distinctive artistic journey, versatile skillset, and diverse cultural background collectively enhance the significance of my design work. Having established a robust foundation in visual design and illustration early in my life and career, I have seamlessly integrated technical capabilities, including web development, creative coding, and physical computing,” she explains.

This unique blend of cultural experience and artistic prowess has given Bowen the ability to push boundaries and explore innovative virtual and physical interactions. Shaped by the cultural treasures of China, and enriched by her experiences in Australia and the United States, her background helps contribute a profound layer of depth to her design approach. This multicultural perspective helps facilitate an understanding of user behaviors preferences, and expectations across what she says is a broad array of cultural contexts.

As a Vega Digital Award-winning artist, Bowen’s goal is to engage people with her designs. With her project “To the Rescue,” Bowen aims to gamify the learning of vital first-aid skills, which operates through an array of engaging lessons in which learners acquire the knowledge to perform first aid in various emergency scenarios.

In the next few years, Bowen sees herself moving into evolving technologies such as AR (augmented reality), VR (virtual reality), and AI (artificial intelligence). “I am excited about the efficiency it brings and the creativity it sparks,” she says.

Bowen Shen’s cross-disciplinary creative designs, her rich multicultural background, and her determination to help people learn through her work set her apart from other artists. Hard work, and a willingness to learn and experiment, have carried her to this point in her life. Her goal is to continue pushing boundaries—both now and in the future.