2016 Catalogue Archive

A leading figure in the Korean avant-garde movement since the 1960s, Seung-taek Lee continues to make his experimental art out of smoke, fire, stones, wire, and rope. Cotton rope has become a signature medium for Lee – binding sticks, rocks, and found objects into “non-sculptures,” and coiling rope on painted surfaces or walls to produce “experimental drawings.” His drawings, like this one from 2016, recast the intimate line of traditional pencil on paper into a monumental sculptural act that elevates the medium of both the ordinary rope and the common drawing. Similar to American Land artists and the Italian Arte Povera group, Lee’s diverse art practice – which includes performance art, installations, videos, sculpture, and paintings – interrogates the social and artistic values of his country. Since receiving the Nam June Paik Art Center Prize in 2009, Lee has exhibited internationally, and his work has been acquired by a number of public institutions.