Lee Ufan’s From Line series are simple yet highly evocative paintings. Each painting shows vertical lines that start boldly at the top of the canvas before gradually fading out as they move downward.
Lee Ufan created his artwork during Mono-ha, a popular movement in the 20th Century that influenced both Korean and Japanese artists. Mono-ha tended to focus on the relationship between natural and industrial materials. In contrast, Lee’s From Line series pivots away from this concern and instead seems to meditate on the very nature of painting itself. By repeatedly drawing those gradual lines, Lee makes the viewer conscious of the artist’s hand, the brush, the paint, and the surface he is working on.
What always fascinated me the most was how the fading of the lines seemed to represent the inevitable passing of time and the impermanence of all things. As the brush ran out of paint, the line grew lighter and lighter until disappearing completely. This simple reality reminded me that everything is temporary and forever changing. The sparse simplicity of the lines encouraged me to think about even greater ideas, like how small actions can reflect profound truths about life.
Lee’s work was also clearly connected to philosophies of Eastern traditions like Zen Buddhism, which valued serenity and presence of mind—things I aspire to learn as a young person. The blank spaces on the canvas were just as meaningful as the lines themselves. They created a sense of equilibrium and invited me to slow down and truly experience the current moment. It was like the paintings were calmly nudging me to stop rushing around so much and really see what was right there in front of me.
In a world that constantly bombards one’s senses, Lee Ufan’s minimal “From Line” series offered me a peaceful escape. The spare approach stripped away unnecessary clutter and encouraged me to appreciate the basic elements of any artwork: the line, the movement, the space. It showed me that art didn’t need complexity to be meaningful—a lesson that will always stay with me.
These paintings inspired me to consider the connections between simple acts and profoundly consequential ideas. They reminded me to take a moment every once in a while, to observe and reflect on myself and the world unfolding around me. I’ll always be grateful for that calming invitation to mindfulness that Lee Ufan’s work first extended to me.
