He says his experience of McCahon's "I Am", "indicates that there is no separation between 'I' and the world." The scale and immersive quality of his works extend this experience to the viewer.
In much of his work Lee explores notions of identity and his relationship with the natural world, connecting with the bigger picture, the universe, in which "I" is a tiny part.
His lightbox work, "Bridge of Nowhere", is a collage of bush and river landscapes, which looks like a possible aerial view of the Whanganui landmark. Lee splits the word nowhere to its opposite meaning - now and here. He says, "A sense of nowhere is like waking from a dream – Oh where am I? why am I here? Where is here? I've just opened my eyes, I am in pitch black in the room."
There is a feeling of disorientation – "but it's when we have a sense of nowhere there is an expanded sense of self - a bigger sense of space and time and the universe – part of something bigger than our small world".
Lee's works are digital collages, composed of photographs from his travels in other countries and places, including Antarctica. In his large 3D video "Dark Matter", footage of Castlecliff, Orewa Beach and Waikato River form the background to a morphing, transforming object he calls black goo, white goo and green goo. Through 3D digital animation the object changes shape and form, resembling at times a crystal or an asteroid.
Lee says he invented a fictional object, a sort of personal science-fiction.
"The black goo is something like a small black hole but can be transformed to any possible state of matter in the universe. Black goo symbolises the state of fire, white goo symbolises the state of ice, and green goo symbolises a living organism under the ocean."
During his time as artist in residence at Tylee Cottage Lee immersed himself in nature, collecting driftwood during several visits to Kai Iwi Beach, spending time in Paloma Gardens, walking every day at Virginia Lake and working with clay in the cottage garage.
"My tactile sense influenced my other work at Tylee. My mood was affected; I cherish all these memories."
Lee is a New Zealander, has lived here for 22 years and says that while he is very much Korean in terms of his mother tongue, his connections with family, friends, the food he eats and even, he surmises, the way he smells, New Zealand is his base camp.
Tylee Cottage and Whanganui were also his base camp for four and half months. His large digital collage of Virginia Lake is his construction of an aerial view in which he has positioned his Auckland house – at home both here and there.
