NEW YORK CITY – Hashimoto Contemporary is pleased to present
Over The Moon, a solo exhibition by Los Angeles-based artist So Youn
Lee. The exhibition will be Lee’s inaugural solo presentation at
Hashimoto Contemporary.
For Over The Moon, the artist will be exhibiting a series of new paintings featuring her iconic young genderless explorer Mango and
their sidekick, a white French Bulldog named Choco. Traveling through pastel hued environments echoing Lee’s memories and dreams, Mango looks out at the viewer, their large eyes sparkling with curiosity. Mango’s cloud-like hair swirls around their head, melding into the landscape.
Rainbows, bubbles, eyeballs and stars are recurring symbols which can be found scattered throughout the work.
The seminal piece in the exhibition, titled The Lunch (pictured above) depicts Mango multiplied, posed and lounging reminiscent of Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe. A plump Choco is in the foreground, sitting on the grass and looking off into the distance, while luminous strokes of paint dance across the surface like shooting stars.
After two years spent exploring themes of inner sorrow, confusion and a desire to feel connection, the new body of work exhibits optimism and the search for silver linings. The artist captures a feeling of innocence; the gestural movements of her bright color palette brimming with a jubilant
sense of celebration. Full of hope and ready to move forward, Lee considers this body of work the closure of her pandemic series.