We recently connected with Jung Sun Lee and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jung Sun, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I recall having a desire to become an artist since a very young age. I received rigorous training in drawing and watercolor skills from elementary school to qualify for art middle school, which could guide me towards becoming an artist in South Korea.
During my early years, I was always with friends who shared my passion for art, and we had many experiences appreciating art together, unlike other kids our age. For instance, in the first year of our middle school, we had a group tour of Europe to visit the most famous art museums in England, Italy, and France. During this tour, I was particularly impressed by Centre Pompidou in Paris, which had a unique architectural concept and an impressive collection of modern art pieces. This visit impacted me greatly and influenced me to dream of living in Paris in the future.
In our art middle/high school, we had an art show every year where we showcased our artwork. I consider it a privilege to have studied at an art school that provided such opportunities to well-trained and qualified students. In college, I studied fine art, including painting, printmaking, media work, and installation.

However, during my school years, being an artist still seemed abstract to me. I wanted to find something other than art that was connected to my life in art. So I decided to go to Paris after finishing college to learn French and experience a new world.
While living in Paris, I met people from different countries and backgrounds, not just the French, and realized how narrow my insight and ideas were. Learning a new language also gave me an idea of the process of creating visual elements for artistic expression, which was similar to translating Korean to French. The best part of living in Paris was not only enjoying the iconic city’s scenery but also visiting modern and contemporary art spaces. I used to look up shows at the Palais de Tokyo, Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain, and Centre Pompidou, which was always the best for me. Looking at modern masterpieces and experimental contemporary artworks, I dreamed of a career as an artist who represented cultural and historical stories from a modern perspective.
After returning to Korea, I began my journey as a professional artist, embracing all those experiences.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Jung Sun Lee, I am South Korea born and raised, working in San Francisco Bay Area. I paint and draw scenery, sometimes turning them into 3-dimensional works. My artwork may seem modern, geometric, and architectural at first glance, but it also reflects Asian traditional landscape painting. I use landscape images composed of geometric shapes and lines to represent various stories about life, culture, history, religion, and more. I have been working with this concept for over 15 years, but had to take a break due to some personal life changes.
In 2010, I came to the US after getting married. My husband was working as a postdoc researcher at UC Berkeley, and we planned to reside there for a couple of years. However, I became a mother of two daughters and had to take care of them, which made it difficult to focus on my artwork. Eventually, my family decided to reside in the US permanently, and we moved from California to Georgia and Massachusetts, adapting to new surroundings each time.
Despite the challenges of moving and taking care of my children, I didn’t want to lose my passion for art. I restarted my work while living in Georgia and participated in several group shows after moving to Massachusetts. Moving every couple of years was challenging, but it also gave us many special memories in each place. I tried to enjoy the changes in my environment and capture the scenery in nature as much as possible. These experiences made me reflect on how to measure differences and balance them. All of these experiences made me deliberate over the stories of my work and identify myself as an immigrant mother artist.
My family returned to California during the pandemic and we started a new phase of our lives in the Bay Area.
I have always appreciated the natural beauty of this state, and it has been a source of inspiration for my work. My paintings not only depict landscapes but also convey the philosophy of life, which is in line with the Korean traditional painting. I aim to showcase my background and perspective on the world through my visual language and artistic practices. The geometric shapes and patterns in my compositions allow me to portray a variety of subjects with a unique perspective. Moreover, I create architectural images that bring my work to life in 3D.

Recently, my artwork was featured in a group exhibition called “Home” at The Drawing Room. In this painting, I represented an island as an immigrant who has a journey to search for a new home, where I paid homage to Angel Island, a critical place in history for Asian immigrants. I also had my first solo show, titled “Modern Scenery,” at Four Chicken Gallery in San Francisco. This exhibition included all my recent paintings from the past two years, including 3D paintings and large-scale drawings.
By sharing my passion for art, I connected with the community and felt grateful for those experiences.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I find it most rewarding to connect with the world through my artistic ideas that stem from introspection. It fascinates me to present external scenery through images that arise from contemplating life. By doing so, I invite viewers to explore various perspectives within a single frame and create their own interpretations. This is the moment when the viewer and I meet and connect with each other through my art.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I would like to maintain my identity as an immigrant mother in my work and share the various life stories that stem from this background and my philosophy. Often, we encounter misunderstandings and attitudes that fail to recognize our differences. I acknowledge that being credited as an artist who is not a native English speaker and who started the career late may seem like an easy way out, but I believe these conditions make me more unique and motivated to work even harder. I also hope my daughters can grow alongside my artistic career and learn from the journey about life and identity.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jungsunleeart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jungsunlee_art

Image Credits
Jung Sun Lee