Austin Lee: Double-Rendering

Double-Rendering, a solo exhibition of New York-based artist Austin Lee (b. 1983), explores the aesthetic possibilities of combining computer-generated imagery and airbrushing. Lee employs his own digital drawings created with cutting-edge computer graphics technology, such as virtual reality (VR). They serve as a basis for his paintings and sculptures, which incorporate his unique airbrush technique. This exhibition investigates Lee's two-fold image-making practice to reveal the impact that computer graphics have not only on artistic creation but also on the experience of reality.

The title of the exhibition alludes to the double meaning of the term rendering: it is used in computer science to describe the generation of computer graphics from a data set, and it also refers to the process of reproducing or representing reality in conventional art forms. This double definition of rendering enables the analysis of Lee's artistic practice as a continuous and inextricably linked “double-rendering” process instead of a simple assertion of materiality over immateriality.

Double-Rendering comprises five new works that examine the interconnectedness of happiness and sadness. Lee views digital technology not as an inhumane tool that reduces everything to 0 and 1 but as a means of delving deeper into human emotions and visualizing their various manifestations. His work, which straddles the realms of painting, sculpture, and 3D animation, demonstrates how mechanical tools and human agents can coexist in today's technological environment. Lee's practice consistently reiterates that technology is an active and responsive tool for artistic production and that virtual and physical images are not distinct but rather multilayered and hybridized.

Ho Won Kim is a writer and curator. He is interested in the intersection of art and technology, and his recent research focuses on visual perception and practical sensory behavior enabled by digital media. His practice encompasses critical review, creative writing, exhibition design, and media production, reflecting the ever-changing communication environment. He is a 2023 MODA Curates Fellow.