Ness Lee: space of feeling

Ness Lee, space of feeling, 2023. Illustration. Courtesy of the artist.

Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice Presents

Ness Lee: space of feeling

Curated by Lesley Loksi Chan
Exhibition: September 8 – October 13, 2023
Opening Reception: Friday, September 8, 7–10 p.m.

Ness Lee: space of feeling is a solo exhibition featuring works made by the artist during their recent residency at Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice.

“Let’s see. This is a clock that I bring to everywhere. (Ness points to a plastic clock with long bendable limbs sticking out of its face, suction cupped to the window near their desk.) So a lot of these things I actually bring to every studio I have, because for a while I would call it nomadic studio or something, because I just kept moving to different studios for different reasons or whatever. So I just bring familiar things and kind of try to make it home, because a lot of these places, I do have the privilege of taking up that space. It usually feels very foreign to me and very often very, just very lonely, I guess. So these things kind of make me feel a bit more like I have buddies around me. So, let’s see. I usually do bring a lantern of some sort, so I just call this my daikon. (Ness points to a paper white lantern with plastic leaves jutting out of the top.) And I am very into lights and stuff, especially disco lights. So I kind of call this my natural sundial kind of thing. (Ness points to a mirrored sphere and mirrored oblong sitting side-by-side on the windowsill.) I think it changes all the time, but I think maybe around 5:00 or 7:00, usually the sunlight hits it and then the lights will go dancing, and then I’ll know it’s like, Oh my gosh. It’s like 5:00 or 7:00. You have to work. And so, yeah, a lot of these things are toys and junk. In a good way though. And everything has a bit of a small memory or just a reaction or something. I do really love fake food. I think fake food art is ultimate art.”
– Ness Lee playing show and tell with Lesley Loksi Chan

Read more about the show and tell here.

Ness Lee’s work table at Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice. Courtesy of the artist.

About the Artist

Ness Lee is a Chinese-Hakka Canadian born in 1989. Studying at The Ontario College of Art and Design, they have received their Bachelor of Design in Illustration. Based in Toronto, their work has been shown in institutions such as the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, the Gardiner Museum, the Art Gallery of Hamilton, as well as galleries in New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, Taiwan, Montreal and Toronto. Lee has also participated in mural festivals in Canada and Internationally in Hyderabad, India and Cozumel, Mexico.

Lee draws upon personal history and narratives of their diasporic cultural upbringing and identity to their body, language and sexuality. With these embodied experiences, Lee creates tender and surreal illustrations, paintings, sculptures and installations as a language of self-discovery and acceptance. Exploring various states of mind during intimate stages of vulnerability, Lee’s work takes form as an effort in seeking comfort, forgiveness and desire for an end of a self-perpetuated state.

About the Curator

Lesley Loksi Chan is a multidisciplinary artist and artistic director of Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice. She is concerned with invisibility, believability and resistibility and her work has been exhibited internationally including at the Images Festival (Toronto), Vancouver International Film Festival, International Festival of Films on Art (Montreal), British Film Institute (London, UK), Museo de Cine Autobiográfico (Vigo, Spain) and Anthology Film Archives (New York, NY). As Centre[3]’s Artistic Director, she oversees exhibitions, residencies and arts-based projects with a focus on collaborative, experimental and anti-oppressive practices in contemporary art.

About the Residency

The Centre[3] x Incite Foundation Residency is a 12-week self-directed residency for artists working across multiple disciplines. The residency offers artists dedicated studio time, space and technical support to explore ideas and techniques in Centre[3]’s facilities for traditional printmaking, including lithography, silkscreen, and intaglio, as well as digital printing, media arts, and textiles. Ness Lee was the 2023 Incite Foundation x Centre[3] artist in residence.

Ness Lee’s work bench at Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice. Courtesy of the artist.

Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice
173 James Street North
Hamilton, Ontario
L8R 2K9
905.524.5084

Instagram: @centre3_
Facebook: @centre3
Twitter: @centre3

Media Contact: artisticdirector@centre3.com

Land Acknowledgement: Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice acknowledges that its organization, located in Hamilton, is on the traditional territories of the Erie, Neutral, Huron-Wendat, Mississauga and Haudenosaunee nations whose presence here reaches back to time immemorial. Centre[3] recognizes the historical oppression of Indigenous peoples, cultures and lands in what is now known as Canada and is committed to healing and decolonizing together through the arts.

Accessibility: Our 173 James North location is partially physically accessible. We have a level entrance leading to our galleries, shop, information desk, washroom and the traditional print studio. Unfortunately, we do not have automatic doors or an elevator. We are working toward becoming a fully physically accessible space.

This residency and exhibition are generously supported by the Incite Foundation for the Arts, the City of Hamilton and the Ontario Arts Council.