Lee Bul’s creations are inspired by classic utopian texts like The City of the Sun by Italian Renaissance philosopher and social theorist Tommaso Campanella, or paintings such as Caspar David Friedrich’s The Sea of Ice from 1823–24. Flickering signs light up in the mirrors’ reflections. 

Lee Bul was born in Yeongju, South Korea in 1964. She is considered one of the most prominent Korean artists of her generation. Lee Bul moved away from her academic sculptural roots early on and has explored the formal and conceptual boundaries of fine art through performances and multisensory installations. Since the early 2000s, her work has addressed topics like utopian modernism, the historical avant-garde in art and architecture, and the rise and fall of progressive projects to redesign the world.

Lee Bul’s work is exhibited in major museums and international collections around the world. Her large cast steel tower Aubade V was exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2019. In 2024, she was responsible for the frequently changing design of the facade of the Metropolitan Museum in New York.