b. 1978, Seoul, South Korea; lives and works in Los Angeles, U.S.

Kang Seung Lee is a Korean-American multimedia artist who works across video, sculpture, and installation to explore themes of identity, belonging, and memory. Born in Seoul in 1978, Lee lived in various continents before relocating to Los Angeles. His experiences of navigating cultural and linguistic differences have had a significant impact on his artistic practice. His works often incorporate found objects and materials, which he transforms through innovative techniques to create visually striking and thought-provoking installations. His video works, which are characterized by their experimental and poetic approach, explore the complex relationship between personal and political histories. Through his work, Kang Seung Lee challenges viewers to reconsider their own assumptions about identity, belonging, and history, and to imagine new possibilities for connection and understanding. This is particularly evident in the work Kang Seung Lee has done to mine queer archives, excavating, in particular, the histories of artistic figures who lost their lives to AIDs. By revealing and (re)telling their stories the archive’s potential to bring people together across time and place is revealed. Such an approach highlights a utopian vision of community that José Esteban Muñoz deemed ‘queer futurity’.

Recent solo projects include Sala de Vídeo: Kang Seung Lee, Museu de Arte de São Paulo (MASP), (2024); Who Will Care for Our Caretakers, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul (2023-2024); The Heart of A Hand, Vincent Price Art Museum, Los Angeles (2023); Briefly Gorgeous, Gallery Hyundai, Seoul (2021); QueerArch, Hapjungjigu, Seoul (2019); Garden, One and J. Gallery, Seoul (2018); and untitled (la revolución es la solución!), Artpace, San Antonio (2017). Lee's work has been included in group exhibitions Made in LA 2023, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2023); Hors de la nuit des normes, Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2023); Strings of Desire, Craft Contemporary, Los Angeles (2023); documenta fifteen (invited by Jatiwangi Art Factory), Kassel (2022); how we are in time and space: Nancy Buchanan, Marcia Hafif, Barbara T. Smith, Armory Center for the Arts, Pasadena, CA (2022); Soft Water Hard Stone, the 2021 New Museum Triennial, New Museum, New York (2021); Minds Rising, Spirits Tuning, the 13th Gwangju Biennale (2021); Solidarity Spores, Asia Cultural Center, Gwangju (2020); MMCA 2020 Asia Project: Looking for another family, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul (2020); No Space Just A Place, Daelim Museum, Seoul (2020); and Reconstitution, LAXART (2017). Forthcoming group and solo shows include Foreigners Everywhere, the 60th Venice Biennale, Venice (2024) and Lazarus, MASP, São Paulo (2024).

For further information about this artist please click here.

For Kang Seung Lee's entry on Asia Art Archive's website please click here.