“Glowing from afar, YOU is beautiful because of its delicacy and purity in a transient moment.” 

—Jung Lee 

For her ongoing Aporia series, Korean artist Jung Lee (b.1972) explores the power of words through her personified, text-based neon installations set in natural landscapes. Aporia, meaning a paradox or an expression of doubt in Greek, was inspired by Roland Barthes’ A Lover’s Discourse, a story of love, language and solitude. To create YOU, an early work from the series, Lee placed the neon word in the far distance on a deserted beach in the west coast of Korea during the lowest tide: ‘At the lowest tide, the water is farthest away and the timing is fleeting but intense.’ Lee continues, ‘I believed that this timing could portray the word “YOU” in a mysterious and beautiful way, so I took the neon as close to the sea as I could.’ This dreamy yet lonely setting invites the viewer to reflect on the reverberations that ‘YOU’ evokes.  

Based in Seoul, Jung Lee has exhibited widely, including at the Seoul Museum of Art, and her work resides in the prestigious Burger Collection, Hong Kong. Notable collaborations include the album cover for Maroon 5’s V in 2014 and a neon installation for Saint Laurent in 2021.