Zhuang Yan (1915-2002) was born in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, and studied drawing at the Shanghai Art School. Zhuang was a researcher in the Art Department of the Yan'an Lu Xun Art Academy; deputy head of the Art Group of the Research Office of the Yan'an Central Party School; editor-in-chief of the Defend Yan'an Illustrated (Baowei Yan'an huakan, 保卫延安画刊); teaching staff in the Art Department of the Revolutionary Minorities Art Academy; Associate Professor in the Departments of Industrial Design and Fine Arts of Beijing Normal University; and deputy head of the Beijing Art Academy.

Initially, Zhuang worked in oil painting, but in his middle years he switched to woodblocks. In his later years, he was known for his Chinese painting and his calligraphy.