Seungae Lee

LEE Seung Ae (b. 1979) conveys intangible elements such as light, sound, intimate emotions, and unseen faith and spirit through her art. Primarily using graphite and paper, she extends her paintings into installations and stop-motion animations, pushing beyond traditional boundaries. LEE Seung Ae employs refined natural materials like wood and minerals, along with everyday objects rich with her personal memories. She uses frottage on their surfaces as a cornerstone of her paintings, aiming to uncover the inherent vitality within subjects that often reside quietly on life's periphery. All static objects are essentially manifestations of the vibrant natural world. Her intention to capture and represent the spirit inherent in everything showcases an aspect deeply aligned with the Eastern naturalistic worldview. Through her artistry of integrating intangible spiritual elements within her artworks, LEE aspires to connect with a grander universe beyond the visible realm. The unique texture, hue, aroma, and characteristics of graphite perfectly resonate with her creative approach and thematic nuances. The pencil, a basic drawing tool, reveals the artist's physical gestures, depositing varying traces of graphite on paper based on the applied pressure, thereby making her bodily actions perceptible. Over the past decade, LEE has consistently produced video works derived from paintings. Through a process of drawing and erasing repeatedly, she captures these painted scenes with a digital camera, transforming them into sequential animations. The images in her videos flow and evolve, expanding the narrative, and eventually come full circle to their origins. Meanwhile, organic sounds from elements like water, wind, fire, and smoke seamlessly complement the visuals. Her video works serve as a medium to visualize imaginary realms. Not restricted to a fixed narrative structure, she intuitively alters images in succession, effectively showcasing her process by incorporating time within her frames. LEE Seung Ae was born in Seoul, Korea, in 1979. She received her MFA at Royal College of Art, London, UK in 2016 and currently works across London and Seoul. The artist has held solo exhibitions at various institutions such as Art Space Boan 1 at Boan 1942 (Seoul, Korea, 2024), ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL (Seoul, Korea, 2023; 2012), Chapter II (Seoul, Korea, 2020), Amado Art Space (Seoul, Korea, 2018), De Art Center (Beijing, China, 2018), Korean Cultural Center (London, UK, 2018), Marlborough Fine Art (London, UK, 2017) in 2017, Doosan Gallery (Seoul, Korea, 2011), and more. She participated in the The 24th SongEun Art Award (2024), The 14th Gwangju Biennale: Soft and Weak like Water (2023), The 1st Jinan International Biennale: Power of Harmony (2020), Theme Exhibition of the 4th Guangzhou Triennale: The Unseen (2012), and also, group exhibitions held at Malmitalo (Helsinki, Finland, 2025), ARARIO GALLERY (Shanghai, China, 2025, Cheonan, Korea, 2020; 2010; 2006, Seoul, Korea, 2011; 2010), Doosan Gallery (Seoul, Korea, 2022), Palazzon Ca’Zanardi (Venice, Italy, 2017), Marlborough Fine Art (London, UK, 2016), and more. LEE has participated in numerous domestic and international residencies, including the Delfina Foundation residency in 2026. She was awarded the Valerie Beston Artists’ Trust Prize (London, UK) in 2016, and GUCCI Young Artist Grant (Seoul, Korea) in 2013. Her works are acquired by renowned institutions including the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (Netherlands), the Government Art Bank of the MMCA (Korea), Seoul Museum of Art (Korea), and the ARARIO Collection (Korea).