Photo by Meghan Smith

Charles Lee is an interdisciplinary artist, writer and educator based in the Bay Area. Using photography, archives, assemblage, drawing, video, and installation, the interdisciplinarity of Lee’s work is a metaphor for what Blackness is; a stateless existence that is always in flux and at odds with categorization. Lee’s work extrudes that which is universally experienced while simultaneously elucidating experiences that are culturally specific and challenge traditional Western epistemologies.

Lee’s work gained international visibility in 2024 at Paris Photo with Casemore Gallery. Since receiving his MFA from California College of the Arts in 2023, he has held solo exhibitions at the SF Camerawork (2023) and Marin Museum of Contemporary Art (2024). In 2026, he was named a SFMOMA SECA Award Finalist. His work has been included in group exhibitions at Berggruen Gallery (SF), Catharine Clark Gallery, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, SFO Museum, and Transformer Station, among others.

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