Biography
Lee Sun-Don, a Buddhist Master from Taiwan, is best known in the international art circles as the pioneer of “totemic energy oil painting.” Lee’s totemic creativity is also heralded as a mind-awakening aesthetics: it is imbued with profound Zen wisdom that evokes self-reflection and contemplation of the true meaning of life. Lee’s totemic aesthetics has opened up a new horizon in contemporary art.
Lee is the first Asian artist to hold a solo exhibition of oil painting in the Venice Biennale. The curator of Lee’s exhibition at the 53rd Venice Biennale 2009, Achille Bonito Oliva, the former director of Venice Biennale (1993), holds Lee in high regard. He called Lee a “super avant-garde artist” and commented that “his artistic depth and breadth has reminded us of the inspirations revealed in the works of Ciacomo Balla, Wassily Kandinskij, Paul Klee, Hans Arp, Joan Mirò, and Henri Matisse.” Lee’s exhibition at the Venice Biennale 2009 received many praises, including the remarks of “being the most surprising comet” of all participants. With more than forty honourable recognitions, including the Lorenzo il Magnifico Award in the 7th Florence Biennale of Contemporary Art, and numerous solo exhibitions in the first-rate museums across the globe, Lee’s “totemic energy oil painting” has established him a master of the 21st–century contemporary art.
