Cambodian-born artist Pakan Penn began painting at an early age.

At 19, Pakan left Cambodia to enter the Corcoran School of Art in Washington, D.C.

Unable to afford the program or return to his home due to the warn-torn conditions from the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia, Pakan surrendered his studies and took a job with a construction crew in the Metro D.C. area.

After becoming an American citizen and successfully running a home improvement business for 25 years, Pakan has returned to his true passion: painting.

His experimentation with an array of colors and use of palette knife and brush, cultivate a sense of emotion in his paintings, shaped by his unique life story and extensive travels.