Lee Bul, Untitled, 2009; pencil, acrylic, pigmented ink, collage on paper, 80x60cm
Lee Bul, Untitled, 2009; pencil, acrylic, pigmented ink, collage on paper, 80x60cm
Lehmann Maupin Gallery will inaugurate its first international exhibition space with a solo show of new work by Lee Bul on Thursday, 14 March 2013, in the historic Pedder Building in Hong Kong. One of the city’s most iconic buildings, located in the heart of Central, the neo-classical building was constructed in 1923 and is the last surviving pre-war building in the area. For nearly eighty years, the building has been a hub for cultural commerce, and today, it is home to some of Hong Kong's most established art galleries. World-renowned architect Rem Koolhaas and his firm OMA have fully renovated the gallery space and offices.
Considered to be the leading Korean artist of her generation, Lee Bul has achieved international recognition for her formally inventive, intellectually provocative work and her mastery of diverse media from drawing and performance to sculpture, painting, installation and video. The inaugural exhibition will focus on her drawing practice, featured alongside two new painted sculptures, marking the first time that the artist, academically trained in sculpture, has incorporated painting into her sculptural work.
The renovation of the gallery space in the Pedder Building marks Lehmann Maupin's third collaboration with Pritzker-prize winning architect Rem Koolhaas, recently appointed as the curator of the Venice Biennale 14th International Architecture Exhibition (2014). The design incorporates original architectural elements of the building and is conceived to reveal rather than conceal “the patina that distinguishes the historic building from its more glossy neighbors” (OMA).
To coincide with the first edition of Art Basel in Hong Kong, Lehmann Maupin will present a second show in May 2013, organized by Louis Vuitton curator Hervé Mikaeloff, which will explore the diverse ways in which Eastern and Western artists utilize writing and language in their work. The exhibition will address how written language can be a central question in the relationships between different cultures and civilizations, and how artists across the world play with alphabets, characters, words and phrases. Featured gallery artists will include Tracy Emin, Teresita Fernandez, Shirazeh Houshiary, and Robin Rhode.
Lee Bul OBG Fondation Cartier
Lee Bul OBG Fondation Cartier
About Lee Bul
Born in 1964, Lee Bul grew up in Seoul, Korea, and received a BFA in sculpture from Hongik University. Considered the leading Korean artist of her generation, she has achieved international renown for her formally inventive, intellectually provocative oeuvre. Demonstrating virtuosity across diverse media – from drawing and performance to sculpture, painting, installation, and video – her multifaceted production is representative of the most innovative aesthetic currents shaping contemporary art in the global sphere. The artist lives and works in Seoul, Korea.
Lee Bul’s work has been featured in solo presentations at museums throughout the world, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York (1997); Kunsthalle Bern, Switzerland (1999); Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia (2001); MAC, Musée d’Art Contemporain, Marseille (2002); the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York (2002); Le Consortium, Dijon (2002); Japan Foundation, Tokyo (2003); the Power Plant, Toronto (2003); Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney (2004); Domus Artium, Salamanca (2007); and Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, Paris (2007 – 2008) and most recently, the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, Japan.
Lee Bul, installation view at Artsonje Center 2012, Photography by Jeon Byung-cheol Courtesy of the artist and Bartleby Bickle & Meursault
Lee Bul, installation view at Artsonje Center 2012, Photography by Jeon Byung-cheol Courtesy of the artist and Bartleby Bickle & Meursault
She has also participated in important group exhibitions, including “Let’s Entertain,” Walker Art Center, Minneapolis (2000); “01.01.01: Art in Technological Times,” San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (2001); “The Uncanny,” Vancouver Art Gallery (2002); “world rush_4 artists,” National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2003); the inaugural Artes Mundi Prize exhibition, National Museum & Gallery, Cardiff (2004); “Global Feminism” at the Brooklyn Museum of Art (2007); “Mobile Art: Chanel Contemporary Art Container”, Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York (2008); “Fluid Street – Alone, Together”, KIASMA Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsinki (2008); “Prospect.1: A Biennial for New Orleans”, New Orleans (2008 – 2009); “New Art for a New Century: Contemporary Acquisitions, 2000-2010” at the Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach, CA (2010); “New Décor” at the Hayward Gallery, London; and “Transformation” at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo (2010). In 1999, Lee Bul was awarded a prize at the 48th Venice Biennale for her contribution to both the Korean Pavilion and the international exhibition in the Arsenale curated by Herald Szeemann.
About Lehmann Maupin Gallery
Since its establishment more than fifteen years ago, Lehmann Maupin has organized and curated hundreds of exhibitions for some of the world’s most celebrated contemporary artists working in painting, sculpture, photography, video and new media. The gallery has garnered a reputation for supporting artists working in new and challenging forms; artists' whose work has had a lasting impact on contemporary art and culture. Working closely with curators and leading intellectuals in the field, Lehmann Maupin is committed to presenting its artists on an international level and to firmly establishing their contributions to art history in the 21st century and beyond.
The gallery has given some of today’s most respected artists their first one-person exhibitions in New York, including Tracey Emin, Anya Gallaccio, Shirazeh Houshiary, Klara Kristolova, Liu Wei, Do Ho Suh, Juergen Teller, and Adriana Varejão. In addition, the gallery has highlighted emerging talents, such as Mickalene Thomas, Hernan Bas, Angel Otero, and the Japanese artist Mr., by organizing important solo exhibitions around the world and presenting their work at prominent international art fairs. Lehmann Maupin's program also includes Stefano Arienti, Ashley Bickerton, Ross Bleckner, Billy Childish, Mary Corse, Teresita Fernández, Gilbert & George, Lee Bul, Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba, Tony Oursler, Robin Rhode, Tim Rollins and K.O.S., Rei Sato, Jennifer Steinkamp, Suling Wang, Nari Ward, Erwin Wurm, and Mario Ybarra, Jr.
Lehmann Maupin's long-standing commitment to presenting the best contemporary artists working today extends to an outstanding group of Asian artists hailing from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Mainland China. In 2000, the gallery organized the first exhibition of Do Ho Suh's work in the United States. Since that time, Lehmann Maupin has presented solo exhibitions of Rei Sato, and Jun Nguyen-Hatsushiba, alongside those of Lee Bul, and introduced New York audiences to the work of Mr. and Suling Wang. In June 2012, the gallery announced representation of the Chinese artist Liu Wei, who will have his first solo exhibition in the United States at Lehmann Maupin, New York, opening 28 February 2013.
Courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin Gallery, for further information on Lehmann Maupin in Hong Kong, please contact Jennifer Benz Joy, Director of Communications, at +212 254 0054 / jjoy@lehmannmaupin.com.
