NEW YORK, NY.- David Nolan Gallery has the opportunity yet again to exhibit Korean ceramic superstar artist, Young-Jae Lee. Forms from the Earth, the first exhibition of the artist in New York in twenty years, will be on view from November 1 - December 21, 2024. Lee’s work has been exhibited and collected by museums in Europe, Asia and America. Her works are represented in many public collections, including the Museum of Asian Art in Berlin, the Hetjens Museum in Düsseldorf, the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne, the Modern Pinakothek in Munich, the Philadelphia Museum of Modern Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
Young-Jae Lee studied at the College of Art Education in Seoul from 1968 to 1972, where she began her journey in ceramics, before emigrating to Germany. Since 1987, Lee has been the Director of the Keramische Werkstatt Margaretenhöhe in Essen, a ceramic workshop founded in 1924 as part of the Bauhaus Ceramic School. Here, she has rekindled the Bauhaus legacy of classic, accessible design, while adding to it the elegant and functional forms of her native Korea.
Lee humbly refers to herself as a ‘potter’, though her vessels easily stand alongside other works of art in terms of their radiance, complexity, and sublimity. They are highly aesthetic works of art that need no embellishment—they are profound in their simplicity. Her vessels speak to both identity and uniqueness, while also addressing the significance of repetition and variation.
On a deeper level, a vessel holds something that otherwise has no form or shape such as fluids or grains, but also the invisible, intangible spiritual element, making it existential in character. As a sacred object, in its emptiness, it contains and protects a mysterious secret, only to pass it on to those who interact with it.
Her iconic spindle vases, with their clear contours and flowing curves, reflect a more philosophical and spiritual approach to ceramics through the idea that “one plus one equals one.” The spindle vase embodies a grand, transcendental dignity as one object while two individuals (in this case, two bowls) become one, and maintain their own distinctive personalities. The concept of one is the departure point of infinity. Inspired by Constantin Brancusi’s Colonnes Sans Fin, Young-Jae Lee combined geometric modules vertically to create the first examples of her spindle vase form.
Lee emphasizes that her spindle vases should not be viewed as copies of Korean moon jars. Music, too, plays a significant role in her process, particularly the works of violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and composer Olivier Messiaen. Like a musician interpreting a composition, Lee pours her entire being into the subtle variations of seemingly identical forms, drawing out each one’s distinct essence.
The sensuousness, beauty, and raw texture of Young Jae-Lee’s surfaces radiate energy while maintaining a sense of calm. Her bowls and pots evoke serenity and a deep connection to nature and humanity. Holding one of her creations is akin to a spiritual experience, offering a sense of calmness paired with dignity. In many ways, her vessels serve as sources of enlightenment. Lee doesn't seek to create something “new” but rather succeeds in seeing things in a new manner. The past is only interesting as a past made present—tradition in its truest sense, which ultimately leads to the idea that there is nothing to invent, but everything to be discovered.
