Java-MAY-2018-2

Viewers have to confront this beauty, and what do
you do with that?”
Spiritual messages have also been a prevalent part
of Lee’s work. The Art Detour show was titled “Wahe
Guru,” a phrase from the Kundalini Yoga tradition.
I asked why she felt these themes were important.
“I think we need healing. I’ve seen the power of art
in many ways. I’m not just talking about the impact
of a big piece of art. I’m talking about people being
creative, coming alive and beginning to express
themselves, no matter how shaky or weird. Saying,
‘I have a voice and what might that be?’ Every time
you make something, you’re making a statement of
‘I am.’ It takes so much courage to be creative. Part
of what I get to do as an artist is create work that
is hopeful. If we exert ourselves in this way, we can
make something incredible.”
Lee can often stand out in a crowd, with platinum
blonde hair that’s typically tied up in a colorful
headwrap, and a visible sleeve of tattoos. Her
everyday attire is often curated for effect. “I like
these heightened forms of living. You can use words
or you can use poetry. You can say something or you
can sing it. You can walk or you can dance. It takes
courage to express life in an artistic form, but when
you show someone that it can be done, you free
them. That’s power, but it’s not mine. I’m channeling
power. That’s important because when people see me
doing things, they have all these ideas about me. But
it’s not just me as an individual doing this. It’s when I
let go that I’m open to create unbridled.”
So how does being a woman in her field play into
her work and her life? “I’m very lucky to be a woman
because I get to access things like emotional
narratives and spiritual themes. Because I’m a
woman, maybe it’s more accepted that I explore
those topics. My work can be softer, and that’s
interesting because as a person, I can be fairly hard
and guarded. With art, I let people into my secret
world and they get to experience it, and some people
even live with it. Part of being a woman is saying,
‘I may be smaller, but I’m agile!’ There are hidden
strengths that you wouldn’t know about. I do yoga.
I’m flexible. I can contort myself to paint in a way that
would maybe make someone else feel silly, having to
crouch for four hours to paint something.”
I asked if Lee felt compelled to address social issues
in her work. “Just to exist, for some people, is a form
of activism. When I was younger and did a lot of slam
poetry, I talked about how I wasn’t supposed to exist,
not the way I am. How can I exist as who I am in a
world that tells me I’m not? Any time we become
who and what we really are, it’s an act of defiance.
I lead by example, and there’s a lot more serenity
there. I had to stop pointing at other people and heal
myself. When you can heal yourself, then you can
show other people that healing is possible, and that’s
powerful. Someone said the other day, ‘It’s hard to
argue with a transformed life.’”
“I’ve accepted that there are things in this world
that are difficult and painful, and I don’t have to hide
from them in my little world of art. I can integrate
the trauma and become more whole. I don’t have to
be the shiny illusion, and that’s hard because I’m an
aesthetic. I make beautiful things, that’s what I want
to put out into the world. There’s a lot of beauty out
there, and it’s really what I focus on. You can focus on
the pain and difficulties or you can focus on beauty. If
you can add to the beauty, then you’re doing more for
society and for life.”
More than just an artist, Lauren Lee is a living
example of what it means to make choices.
Comfortable in her own skin and brimming with
emotional intelligence, she can easily make witty
observations and talk spirituality in the same
sentence. Lee is a sage and a survivor with a perfect
blend of the practical and the mystical who has made
a life and a livelihood out of cherishing beauty.
For more information on the artist, visit laurenleefineart.com,
facebook.com/laurenleeartist and instagram.com/mslaurenlee/.
JAVA 11
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