Lee Ufan’s Makes Anticipated Return to Tokyo
Born in South Korea in 1936 and based between Japan and France, Lee Ufan is a hugely influential figure in modern Asian art. He is a pioneer of Mono-ha, a radical 1960s Tokyo art movement that ditched traditional painting and sculpting to focus on simple, unedited materials like stone, wood and steel. Scai The Bathhouse is hosting Lee’s first solo gallery show in Tokyo in four years, lining up with major international exhibitions of his work in Venice, New York and Avignon.
Bringing together drawings and sculptures from the 1970s through recent years, this show offers a clear entry point into his quiet, contemplative practice across paper and three-dimensional media. You’ll see charcoal and watercolor works on paper, along with pieces from his celebrated Relatum Sculpture series, which place natural river stones beside industrial iron plates. From the rhythmic, sweeping brushstrokes of his early line drawings to minimalist compositions that leave vast areas of paper untouched, the selection showcases Lee’s focus on subtle physical forces.
