Assimilation is not a fixed, linear process; like the American Dream, it constantly shifts shape. Painter Mike Lee’s solo exhibition The Pendulum at HALF Gallery, NYC, explores this transformation through a personal lens. His paintings reflect a return to traditional family values and shared ideals, filtered through the experience of his immigrant Korean-American family.
Lee’s childhood was shaped by a duality: an often-absent father, embodying workaholism as a tool for financial survival, and a mother who served as the pillar of stability at home. His artworks mirror this dichotomy. Much like John Currin’s early works used candelabras to represent male figures, Lee symbolizes his father with an American-made car.
Yet, the exhibition is more than a nostalgic love letter. Lee notes that rising economic and inflationary pressures have rendered the American Dream increasingly unattainable, turning it into a relic of the past. This positions the show as both a declaration of love for the past and a mirage—an illusion—of the artist’s own future. William Faulkner’s famous quote encapsulates the exhibition’s spirit: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”
The Pendulum invites viewers not only to look at a painting but to explore the delicate balance within the artist’s inner world, navigating the contradictory layers of cultural identity and economic pressure.
Exhibition Details:
Artist: Mike Lee
Work: The Pendulum
Venue: HALF Gallery, New York City
Dates: October 8 – November 1, 2025
