LEE Jeongbae (b. 1974) creates works that mirror the image of nature among the city's landscapes, which are privatized and tailored to conform to human needs and desires. Prior to this, the artist experimented with various mediums, including painting, photography, video, and installation. In 2016, LEE began to take an interest in representing deteriorating landscapes that had gradually lost all original meaning through the encroachment of capitalism. These segmented images, which become objets, each act as a landscape that portrays various scenes from nature. LEE Jeongbae's works, which examine the daily life of the city, capture fragments of mountains, rivers, and the sky that peer through the cityscape. These images are separated by geometric forms and expressed through the use of artificial materials such as FRP and aluminum panels. Nature, which has been torn apart by capitalism and materiality, is recomposed by LEE into atypical forms and painted over with color. Completed through a delicate process of painting the surface of the sculpture hundreds of times, these works represent new abstract landscapes expressed through LEE's perspective.
Read MoreSince LEE Jeongbae's first solo exhibition at Munhwa Ilbo Gallery (Seoul, Korea) in 2005, he has shown at Artside Gallery (Seoul, Korea); Window Gallery at Gallery Hyundai (Seoul, Korea); 16 Bungee at Gallery Hyundai (Seoul, Korea); Seodaemun Prison History Hall (Seoul, Korea); Pibi Gallery (Seoul, Korea); Goodspace Gallery (Seoul, Korea); and the Seoul Metropolitan Government (Seoul, Korea). LEE has also participated in various group exhibitions at the Busan Museum of Art (Busan, Korea); Korean Cultural Center in Brussels (Brussels, Belgium); Buk-Seoul Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea); Seoul Olympic Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea); Arario Gallery (Seoul, Korea); CAN Foundation (Seoul, Korea); Whanki Museum (Seoul, Korea), and more. In 2011, LEE was awarded the "JoongAng Fine Arts Prize," organized by the Seoul Arts Center (Seoul, Korea). His works are included in many significant collections such as MMCA, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (Seoul, Korea); Seoul Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea); Arario Museum (Seoul, Korea); Joongang Ilbo (Seoul, Korea); CAN Foundation (Seoul, Korea); Whanki Museum (Seoul, Korea); and ART OMI Collection (New York, USA).
Text courtesy Arario Gallery.
