Lee Bul (b. 1964, Yeongju; lives and works in Seoul) works across a diverse range of media—from drawing, sculpture, and painting to performance, installation, and video—in examining the intricacies of shared human consciousness and the myths and folklore that accompany history. She investigates the liminal space between binaries such as the individual and the collective, and contradictory feelings such as isolation and claustrophobia. Her installations and sculptures explore universal themes such as the utopian desire to achieve perfection through technological advances, and the dystopic suspicions and failures that often result. Though varied in material and content, the works are united in their exploration of structural systems—from the individual body to larger architectural frameworks that encompass cities and utopian societies. For Lee Bul, humankind’s fascination with technology ultimately refers to our preoccupations with the human body and our desire to transcend flesh in pursuit of immortality. This interest often materializes in her work in the form of a cyborg—a being that is both organic and machine—the closest thing to a human that truly achieves this ideal. Lee Bul considers the cyborg a conceptual metaphor in its personification of social attitudes to technology; simultaneously a paragon and a monster.
Lee Bul received a BFA in sculpture from Hongik University, Seoul, in 1987. Solo exhibitions of her work have been organized at Art Sonje Center, Seoul (2016 and 2012); Vancouver Art Gallery, (2015); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2015); National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul (2014); Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg (2013); Mori Art Museum, Tokyo (2012); Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris (2007); The Power Plant, Toronto (2002); New Museum, New York (2002); and The Museum of Modern Art, New York (1997). Her work has been included in important group exhibitions and biennials such as Score_ Music for Everyone, Daegu Art Museum, Daegu, Korea (2017); X: Korean Art in the Nineties, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul (2016); The Future is already here – it’s just not very evenly distributed, 20th Biennale of Sydney (2016); Contemporary Art at the Guggenheim, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (2015); Burning Down the House, 10th Gwangju Biennale, Gwangju, Korea (2014); Prospect 1: A Biennial for New Orleans, New Orleans, LA (2008); Not Only Possible, But Also Necessary: Optimism in the Age of Global War, 10th International Istanbul Biennial (2007); and dAPERTutto, 48th Venice Biennale (1999). Her work is in numerous international public and private collections, including Los Angeles County Museum of Art; M+, Hong Kong, Hong Kong; Mori Art Museum, Tokyo; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia; National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea; Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul; the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York; Tate Modern, London; and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN.
In 1999, Lee Bul was awarded an honorable mention at the 48th Venice Biennale for her contribution to both the Korean Pavilion and the international exhibition curated by Harald Szeemann. In 2014, she received the Noon Award at the 10th Gwangju Biennale, given to an established artist who has produced the most experimental work that embodies the theme of the biennale.
李昢(1964年生於韓國瀛洲;於韓國首爾定居)從事於各種媒體– 從繪畫、雕塑、表現藝術,裝置和視頻- 透過媒體審視人類意識的覆雜性,以及歷史裡的神話和民間傳說。她研究二元性之間的邊界空間如個人和集體,以及人類矛盾的情感,如孤立和幽閉恐懼症。她的裝置和雕塑探索大命題,例如通過科技進步實現烏托邦,以及經常導致對敵托邦的質疑和失敗結果。雖然材料和內容有所不同,但這些作品在結構系統上是統一的 – 從個體到涵蓋城市和烏托邦社會的更大的框架。對李昢來說,人類對科技的迷戀最終指向人體和人類追求永生的慾望,她的作品之中經常以機器人的形式存在 – 有機和機械的混合體 – 最接近人類理想的形態。她將機器人隱喻為社會對科技態度;同時是完美之物和怪物。
李昢在1987年於弘益大學獲得雕塑美術學士學位。她曾舉辦多個個展, 包括韓國Art Sonje 藝術中心(2016年和2012年)、美國溫哥華美術館(2015年)、法國巴黎東京宮(2015年)、韓國首爾國家現當代藝術博物館(2014年) 、廬森堡大公國現代美術博物館(2013年)、日本東京森美術館(2012年)、卡地亞當代藝術基金會(2007年)、多倫多The Power Plant當代藝廊(2002年)、美國紐約新當代藝術博物館( 2002年)和美國紐約現代藝術博物館(1997年)。李昢的作品亦在重要的群展和雙年展展出,例如:韓國大邱美術館的「Score_Music for Everyone」(2017年)、韓國首爾美術館的「X: Korean Art in the Nineties」(2016 )、第20屆悉尼雙年展「The Future is already here – it's just not very evenly distributed」(2016)、美國紐約所羅門古根漢美術館的「古根漢的當代藝術」(2015年)、第10屆光州雙年展「Burning Down the House」(2014年)、新奧爾良雙年展「Prospect 1: A Biennial for New Orleans」(2008年)、第10屆伊斯坦堡國際雙年展「Not Only Possible, But Also Necessary: Optimism in the Age of Global War」(2007年)、第48屆威尼斯雙年展的「dAPERTutto」(1999年)。李昢的作品可見於多個國際公營及私人收藏,包括美國洛杉磯郡美術館、香港M+視覺文化博物館、日本東京森美術館、美國休斯敦藝術博物館、澳大利亞墨爾本維多利亞國家美術館、韓國首爾國家現代美術館、美國紐約所羅門古根漢美術館、英國倫敦泰特現代藝術館、美國明尼亞波利斯沃克藝術中心。
1999年,李昢在第48屆威尼斯雙年展獲得榮譽獎,表揚李昢為韓國參展和哈洛·史澤曼策展的國際展覽的貢獻。 2014年,她獲得光州雙年展的Noon藝術獎 - 獎項給予雙年展中最具實驗性的作品的藝術家。