"When the painted parts and the unpainted parts, the parts I make and the parts I do not make, the inner and the outer interact and reverberate in a mutually stimulating relationship, it is possible to sense poetry, criticism, and the transcendent in the space."
A Korean-born artist, Lee Ufan is a philosopher and leading figure in postwar contemporary art, best known for his role in the Japanese Mono-ha ("School of Things") movement. The Mono-ha school of thought rejected Western notions of representation, instead focusing on the relationships of materials and perceptions rather than on expression or intervention. His minimalist works—often composed of simple materials like stone, steel, and pigment—emphasize the relationship between object, space, and viewer. Rooted in Eastern philosophy and phenomenology, Lee’s art invites contemplation through absence, repetition, and gesture.
In his Correspondence series (1991–2006), each brushstroke becomes a quiet dialogue between matter and emptiness. Departing from the physical materials of his earlier sculptural work, he reduces his gesture to a single, fading brushstroke—an act that highlights both materiality and the passage of t.mes . His play between mark and void through the deliberate arrangement of negative space allows what is left unsaid—or unpainted—to participate in the formation of the work. The visible brushstroke and the surrounding emptiness operate together, each defining and activating the other.
Compared to earlier periods—whereas the From Line (1973–84) works unfold in fluid, elongated strokes and the With Winds (1982–86) series captures a sense of movement through expressive, airy gestures—this period introduces a new visual density. Lee's brushstrokes here become more compact, block‑like, and materially present, their nearly rectangular forms asserting themselves against a deliberately untouched ground.
當筆觸所及與未及之處、人為與非人為之域、內在與外在之境，在互爲啟發的關係中共振，詩意、批判性與超然性便於此可被感知。
韓裔藝術家李禹煥，是一名哲學家、戰後當代藝術領軍人物，更是日本「物派」運動核心代表。物派思想摒棄西方表象傳統，聚焦物質與感知的共生關係，而非藝術性的表達或干預。李禹煥的極簡主義作品常以石、鋼、顏料等基礎材質構成，強調物體、空間與觀者的互動關係。植根東方哲學與現象學，李禹煥透過留白、重複與動作引發沉思。
在《對應》（1991-2006）系列中，每道筆觸皆成物質與虛無的靜默對話。藝術家不再使用早期雕塑般的物理材質，將藝術表達凝為一道漸隱的墨痕——此舉同時強調著其中的物質性與時間的流逝。 透過刻意營造的留白，藝術家使未言說（或未繪製）之境參與作品建構，讓這一劃成爲痕跡與虛空的見證。筆觸與周遭虛空相互定義，彼此活現。
相較於1973-1984年《從線》系列的流延伸展線條，及1982-1986年《隨風》系列以飄逸筆觸捕捉動態，本作時期李禹煥主張呈現嶄新的視覺密度。從本作可見，筆觸更緊壓、 方塊狀且物質性突出，其矩形結構在刻意留白的基底上反襯出強烈的存在感。