Manna LEE

Lee Man Na deals with the extraordinary experiences that we encounter in our daily lives, such as the construction of an apartment building in a mountainous neighborhood behind the entrance to the Kumho Tunnel, a dusty school tennis court, and the indescribable emotions felt in the landscape of apartment buildings at night.

“Hillsides that have been cut through to make way for roads, high-rise apartments popping up out of nowhere amidst beautiful mountainsides and plains. The rapid, ever-constructive pace of this place can be threatening, yet, we find it ever familiar, even calm. This strange combination of conflicting emotions and foreignness is a reflection of our present; this transitional landscape could be called the beauty of Korea.”

After receiving a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from Seoul National University’s Department of Western Painting, Lee saved money as a lecturer at an art academy and traveled to Germany, where he graduated with a Diplom and Meisterschuler from the Braunschweig University of Art. When everyone else was engaging in media art and installation art, Lee stuck to painting. His efforts paid off, and he was named Artist of the Year by Chongkundang Yesuljisang.

Lee’s works have a surreal atmosphere that transcends ordinary realist paintings. This is because the meticulously realistic approach clashes with stereotypes of landscapes. Lee painstakingly captures the changing light as the clouds move on an overcast day, the murky fine dust or fog, and the dim light on a dark night, the scenes that we see in real life but do not remember.

This became possible from the painstaking details Lee portrays through long hours in front of the canvas. He uses a technique called “glazing,” which involves applying very thin layers of color, creating a kind of translucent film with oil paints. As a result, the painting reflects different light depending on the angle, creating different senses of depth. This is why Lee asks people to come to see his work in person, for “the deep temporality and resonance of my work cannot be fully captured in a photograph.”

The repeated process of applying paint, waiting for it to dry, and painting again means that each painting takes at least two months to complete, although Lee works more than 12 hours a day, five days a week.

“I’m constantly asking myself if all this hard work is really worth it, if my work will mean something to people. The harder and longer the process is, the weaker my conviction grows. Nevertheless, I still head to the studio because there is still so much I want to do. The viewers who feel and empathize with these stirrings are also an important driving force behind my work. I hope that people can experience extraordinary moments and see the other side of this strange and mysterious world through my work.”

Manna LEE Studio