GAGOSIAN AND JEFFREY DEITCH: Austin Lee: Psychomachia in Miami

Austin Lee knows how to render human emotion. Through a unique process that has defined his career, Lee explores human psychology and emotions by integrating software technologies with traditional methods of art making to produce vibrant paintings, sculptures and video works. Psychomachia in Miami is an extension of the solo exhibition Lee presented in Los Angeles earlier this fall. The exhibition continues Jeffrey Deitch's history of presenting exhibitions and public art projects in the Miami Design District since 2003.
Lee’s work explores the hyperreality of social media and the internet, and, in this exhibition, he continues to explore the complexity of human connection that can be refracted through our digital age. He uses 3-D and virtual reality software to make drawings that are then painted on canvases with airbrush or "sculpted" in materials like resin and bronze. Lee turns inward and examines his own raw emotions through saturated hues and uncanny images.
The exhibition draws inspiration from a transformative visit Lee made to the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy, where he saw Giotto's painted scenes from the 14th-century poem “Psychomachia” by Prudentius. The poem, which depicts the allegorical battle between virtues and vices for control over the human soul, served as an important source for several paintings in the exhibition. Some of Lee's paintings show imagery that is directly drawn from the Chapel's walls, while others are quite references to familiar symbols.
December 3–9, 2024
Artist Reception: Tuesday, December 3, 6-8pm
35 NE 40th St
Miami, Florida 33137