A Dialogue of Love
Mehee Choi Lee
September 15-September 30, 2026
THE COMMONS GALLERY, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Artist Statement
What do time and place mean to us? What meaning does it hold to speak with ourselves and connect with others? These questions have long guided my artistic journey.
For me, time and place are more than traces of the past or spaces where we have lived. They are places where memories gather and emotions remain. Living between Hawaiʻi and Korea has allowed me to experience different landscapes, people, cultures, and moments, shaping the way I see and remember the world.
I want to look closely at the world around me, to love the small things within it, and to communicate with them. Sometimes, I simply want to reach out and hold them. This desire to connect is at the heart of why I paint.
As an abstract painter, I use color, rhythm, energetic brushwork, and the movement of space as a visual language for emotions that cannot always be expressed in words. The textures of nature, light, color, and spatial rhythms are transformed through my memories and feelings into a personal abstract language.
The central themes of my work are communication, empathy, and love. I believe that once a painting is completed, it begins another story within the memories and emotions of each viewer. For this reason, I hope my exhibition becomes more than a place to look at paintings—a space where hearts meet and conversations begin.
Returning to Hawaiʻi, where my artistic journey began, I hope to create a “Dialogue of Love” with the audience, connecting nature, memory, time, place, and human emotion through color and rhythm. Through this shared dialogue, I hope we can create a new story together.
Artist Biography
Mehee Choi Lee is a professional painter active in Korea and the United States. She was born in Korea and graduated with a B.F.A. in Western Painting from Hongik University College of Fine Arts, Seoul, Korea, in 1988
Lee began her professional artistic activities in Hawaiʻi and has participated in numerous solo, invitational, group, and international exhibitions since 2003. Her exhibition history includes venues and art fairs in Seoul, Incheon, Danyang, Busan, Daegu, and other cities throughout Korea, as well as Honolulu and other locations in Hawaiʻi. Her international exhibition activities extend to Washington, D.C., Taipei, Singapore, Romania, and Türkiye.
Her solo and invitational exhibitions include Time (2005, Honolulu), The Day (2018, Incheon), Precious Love (2022, Honolulu), Precious Love (2024, Incheon), and Dialogue of Love (2026, Danyang).
Her selected group and international exhibitions include Two Suggestions, an Invitational Exhibition of International Artists at Bongsan Cultural Center, Daegu (2023); Commitments to Excellence Group Exhibition at Honolulu Academy of Arts Gallery (2018); the Korea–Romania International Art Exchange Exhibition (2023–2025); Whatz Art Fair in Taipei and Singapore (2023); and the KAAH 40th Anniversary International Art Exhibition in Honolulu (2025).
Lee served as President of the Korean Artists Association of Hawaiʻi (KAAH) from 2020 to 2021. Since establishing her studio in Korea in 2021, she has maintained an active artistic practice between Korea and Hawaiʻi.
Alongside her studio practice, Lee has worked as an art educator in Danyang since 2022, teaching acrylic painting and fine art through local lifelong learning and community art programs. In 2026, she taught the specialized program Danyang Life Archive – Recording Through Art, sponsored by Konkuk University.
She continues to pursue her artistic practice through exhibitions, education, and cultural art activities in Korea and abroad.
EVENTS
Tuesday, September 15, 3:00–4:00 PM: Opening Reception
UHM, Art Building, The Commons Gallery
Tuesday, September 15, 4:00–5:00 PM: Curator Talk with Cho Dong Ow
UHM, Art Building, Room 363
THE COMMONS GALLERY is located on the ground floor of The Art Building. From Dole Street, take East-West Road, turn left to Correa Road, and then turn right for the Art Building.
Hours & Admission
Tuesday–Friday, & Sunday, 12–4 p.m.
Closed Saturdays, Mondays, spring break (March 18-22), and state holidays.
Free admission. Donations are appreciated.
Parking is free on Sundays. Parking fees may apply during weekdays.
For more information, please contact 808.956.6888 and gallery@hawaii.edu