Chen Beixin (1932) was born in Beijing. In 1953, he graduated from the Central Art Academy, and three years later, he finished the refresher course in oil painting taught by the Soviet artist Maksimov at the same academy. The next year, he went to Xi'an to teach in the Xi'an Art Academy, where he now heads the Oil Painting Department.

Chen is an expert in oil painting. His painting of the famous scene where Hua Guofeng receives Mao Zedong's testament, making him his official successor, was designed with Huang Naiyuan, Qin Dajian and Liu Wenxi.