The night sky’s mysteries have been a subject of fascination for artists since ancient times. Early humans tracked astronomical events in their cave art. The Egyptians created star charts. More recently, Vincent Van Gogh’s The Starry Night and Frank Stella’s final series, Stars sculptures, were also inspired by the complexities of the night sky. And just this year, James Turrell unveiled The Dome, a Skyspace, a luminous vast structure.
To that list add Sia Sangbok Lee, an eminent Korean artist, whose exhibition at the Kate Oh Gallery, “A Vessel Embracing the Universe,” figured prominently
in New York City last fall. Even as a young girl, Lee was totally captivated by the mysteries of the cosmos. She describes her paintings as “visual meditations on our connectedness with the cosmos and each other.”
The relationship between the universe, nature, and humans is a basic concept of Eastern philosophy. As Lee writes “this concept of ‘macrocosm’ which sees the human body as a miniature version of the universe is at the core of my world view.” Highly acclaimed in Korea where she has won many awards and exhibited both in her native country and abroad, Lee writes that her art depicts a wish “to embrace the infinity and diversity of the universe with love.” Her recent exhibition, “ A Vessel Embracing the Universe,” featured 13 paintings with titles such as Milky Way, Galaxy, and The Big Dipper—all of which meticulously detail the dynamic, swirling, energies of the night sky and reflect her thinking about the self and the cosmos.
Lee’s paintings in her recent exhibition can be understood as objects of meditation. They evoke the relationship between sky and earth, each individual’s connection to others and to the universe. Deeply concerned about the earth’s growing environmental crises and social chaos, she explains that her most fervent hope is that viewers will “connect with a shared humanity while inspiring reflection on the unity of life.”
Lee is renowned in Korea for her concept-driven art based on her lifelong exploration of stars—glowing balls of hot gas, mostly hydrogen and helium that produce heat and light. In her magical painting The Wind of the Stars you experience the movement of stars driven by wind and gasses. She says: “The winds of the universe seem to possess a life force, moving with a sense of order.”
In her painting Galaxy you see what she calls the visible world and an invisible world. Her object, as she explains, is to connect a visible world to a spiritual one.
A luminescence in her artwork dominates while at the same time, directing your eyes to all corners of her “canvas.” But canvas is not Lee’s chosen medium. She paints on hanji, traditional Korean paper made from the inner bark of the mulberry tree, which is native to Korea. Making hanji is a complicated process, first soaking the bark fibers in water and then pounding the finished sheets to compact the fiber. “Because light and color are important in my work, I sometimes use fluorescent acrylic paint and mineral pigments for light emission.”
Lee is a graduate of universities both in Korea and the US. She has exhibited in solo and group exhibitions as well as art fairs in the US and abroad. This notable artist has received many national awards including a Japan Osaka Contest Gold Prize and the Korea Peace Contribution Grand Prize.
Lee often quotes Carl Sagan’s noted comment “We are the descendants of the stars.” Her paintings are based on her belief that humans, like stars, have a cycle of life—birth and death—though the average life of a star can be millions of years. “I hope that people who see my work will feel love and comfort while in deep reflection thinking about the self and the universe.” G&S
Kate Oh Gallery,
31 East 72nd St, NY, NY.
kateohgallery.com
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