Lee Gihun

The Hole is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Korean artist Lee Gihun. Lee navigates the boundary between fantasy and reality through a unique form of fantastic realism. Borrowing the myth of Noah's Ark, Lee subverts the human-centered dualism often found in Western thought, exposing the allure, fear, and contradictions that shape our relationship with nature. Deconstructing and reinterpreting traditional Korean painting techniques with acrylic and watercolor, Lee creates flat, dark color fields that serve as the foundation for vivid, textured forms rendered in oil pastel. Lee grew up in a rural village where two national parks coexisted with the country's largest cement factory. Surrounded simultaneously by the grandeur of nature and the monumental machinery of industry, he experienced a paradoxical environment marked by abundance, wounds, rapid growth, and inherent contradictions. These formative conditions cultivated a dual perspective—one that views nature and industry, reality and fantasy, with equal sensitivity—and became the stratified foundation of his artistic worldview.