At the intersection where the black breath of charcoal meets layered artistic contemplation—this is where Lee Bae begins his work. Since relocating to Paris in 1990, he has built a distinct presence in the international art scene, bridging Korean aesthetics and fundamental questions of contemporary art through a unique monochromatic visual language.
Lee Bae’s world does not linger on the surface of material. His use of charcoal transcends the notion of medium—it becomes a vessel for quiet reflection on life and death, creation and decay, nature and civilization. When black forms emerge across white grounds, the compositions invite us beyond their visual clarity into contemplative depth.
Though his paintings follow the trace of a brush, those gestures are not spontaneous outbursts, but accumulations of thought. Repetitive drawing gives shape to a somatic memory; gestures are distilled into precise, balanced forms. The seemingly vacant white grounds and the maximized physicality of charcoal do not repel, but rather embrace one another. Between them, painting expands—into space, into spirit.
While Lee Bae inherits the tradition of Korean Dansaekhwa (monochrome painting), he reinterprets it with a sensitivity rooted in the contemporary. He imbues materials with meaning without becoming beholden to them, harmonizing Eastern meditation and Western formalism to create a temporality unique to his practice.
His work is not simply to be seen; it must be encountered—through the body, the senses, and memory. The physical weight of charcoal dominates space while simultaneously drawing the viewer inward. In its presence, we encounter time’s depth, the silence of matter, and the trace of being.
Traversing Paris, New York, and Seoul, Lee Bae’s practice continues to evolve beyond cultural borders. It occupies a site where Eastern and Western sensibilities converge—probing new possibilities for painting in the contemporary moment.
At Seoul Art Now, we believe that Lee Bae’s philosophical inquiries and material explorations converge at a place where art becomes a language beyond sensation.