60 ARTIST PROFILE Dongeun Alice Lee
COMMUNICATION # 6 _ On Cryptogram S.O.S, 2017 acrylic colour & night glow colour painting on canvas, 30 x 60 cm
Dongeun Alice Lee
A
n avatar called Alice acts as an alter ego for Dongeun Lee as she explores questions of identity in the digital age through her series ‘Who in the www am I?’ which takes the form of painting in acrylic on top of a digitally printed canvas; 365 pictures combining to make one whole, 365 scenes in which Alice gazes at her life from different locations the artist herself travelled to. Through Alice, the artist investigates how humans as solitary beings are endlessly inclined to confirm their existence, precisely by communicating with other beings. In the modern world of ever-evolving and updating technology, social media and instant messaging, she considers how the quality of inter-subjective
communication is degenerating more than when face-to-face dialogues were the normal, and how this contradiction can be overcome. Digital avatars are used in a way which presents the person as greater than reality, and Lee traces this back to childhood experiences of identifying with inanimate objects such as dolls. Born and raised in South Korea, Lee is now based in London having studied at Chelsea College of Arts. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in South Korea, Italy, New York and the UK. Alongside her personal work she has also produced moving image and film as an art director. leedongeun.com dongeun.alice.lee@gmail.com