Description
The definitive catalogue of contemporary artist Lee Ufan’s sculptural oeuvreThis catalogue raisonné of the acclaimed artist Lee Ufan (b. 1936) is a sweeping and visually arresting record of his groundbreaking sculptural practice. Working with steel and stone—and occasionally glass, cotton, light bulbs, and other locally sourced materials—Lee composes powerful sculptural installations that activate sites of encounter. By juxtaposing these natural and industrial materials in their mostly unaltered states, Lee encourages engagement between the objects, the site of installation, and the viewer. Collectively titled Relatum, these site-specific installations originated in 1968 with the emergence of Japan’s avant-garde Mono-ha group, of which Lee was a key theoretician and leading practitioner. Along with the artist’s increasingly international presence and renown, they have often grown monumental in scale and been installed in diverse settings—in museums, galleries, private homes, and public spaces, including historical venues like the Château de Versailles and the Palais des Papes in Avignon. Yet across decades, the work has remained remarkably true to his original vision: spare in form, subtle in execution, and profound in meaning. With more than 960 catalogue entries—each supported by photography, exhibition details, and historical notes—this publication documents six decades of Lee Ufan’s sculptural installations and offers an intimate look at his creative practice through select writings. As the essential resource on Lee Ufan’s life and work, this catalogue also includes:An illustrated chronology of Lee’s life featuring archival photographyScholarly essays on the sculpture’s evolving meaning and the innovative methodology created for the catalogueExhibition historiesBibliographiesAn index of concepts that groups installations with the same type of materials in the same configuration, offering a crucial vantage point for tracing the development of the artist’s three-dimensional oeuvre. Distributed for Cahiers d’Art Institute