Jaeheon Lee Embraces Haunting Beauty in 'Ghosts in the Garden'
Learning how to live in a world of numbness.
Jaeheon Lee unveiled his first solo show at Management in New York City. Spanning a series of oil paintings, Ghosts in the Garden presents a psychological portrait of a society saying goodbye to its past while searching for meaning in an uncertain future.
A sense of hollowness marks Lee’s paintings, though his compositions are anything but. In his “Three in One” works, several faces blur and bleed into one another atop ornately costumed bodies, while the floral maximalism of ‘Figure in a Garden’ exudes an anxious buzz
At the heart of Lee’s work lies a tension between tradition and modernity. Drawing inspiration from the clash of figuration and abstraction that dominated art circles in 1960s Korea, he crafts a vivid portrait of a society grappling with its traditions while navigating the pressures of a hyper-consumed present. Yet, even as his home country is being pulled into becoming a “void of numbness,” his work resists despair. Each brushstroke carries the weight of history and a promise of transformation, offering a thoughtful meditation on personal and collective identity.
Throughout the exhibition, the artist invites viewers to embark on a journey of cultural reckoning – one that reaches for a much-needed reflection to fill the void. Flickering between ideas of the old and new, Lee presents a tender exploration of what it means to hold on, let go and move forward, all at once.
The exhibition is now on view in New York through December 29, 2024.
Management
39 E Broadway 404,
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