Over the Influence is very proud to present the first solo exhibition of Mike Lee with the gallery. Sunny Days at Over the Influence, Los Angeles will present a new body of works on canvas alongside new sculptures by the artist.
Lee communicates contemporary social attitudes and anxieties through simplified silhouettes of the human form. By avoiding detail and blurring identity, his iconic figures amplify the emotive undertones of his own biographical narratives. These stylized forms are universally relatable and deeply cathartic reflections of the artists own life.
Through a series of new and original multimedia works, Lee reimagines his adolescence into a surreal play-land rendition of his youth. From physical spaces, to solemn moments of introspection, he reflects on mundane moments of his childhood spent in Southern California. The sequence of rooms navigates through various stages of his upbringing with each space confronting specific memories. As the author of his surreal retelling, the artist takes creative license with the narrative, embellishing the story with happier alternatives to offset an underlying sadness. While some are whimsical fantasies, Sunny Days wrestles honestly between the melancholy of memory and idyllic dreamlike possibilities.