Jungjin Lee

While in New York City, Lee worked for the photographer Robert Frank whose travels across the United States may have influenced Lee’s own decision to take a road trip across the United States. In her travels she encountered the American Desert, a landscape that she is deeply moved by and which becomes the subject of several of her photographic series, including Desert (1990–94), American Desert I–IV (1990–1996), On Road (2000–01), Wind (2004–07) and Remains (2012–). Lee photographs these barren landscapes when they are transformed by the tumultuous weather, discarded refuse, decaying structures and by her own photographic process.

Lee's Unnamed Road (2010-12) was part of This Place.

Photo critic and historian Vicki Goldberg observes that Lee's landscapes represent her own, "introspective states and thoughts." While the majority of Lee's work focuses on the land; in several series she explores other subjects in the series including Pagodas (1998); crumbling Buddhist sculptures, Buddhas (2002); every objects, Thing (2003–06) and portraits, Breath (2009–).

In 1987, she immersed herself for one year in a project focused on documenting the life of an old man who made his living hunting for wild ginseng. This experience motivated Lee to become a photographer and expand her technical knowledge of photography by traveling to New York City and enrolling in New York University to pursue an MA in photography.

Jungjin Lee (born 1961) is a Korean photographer and artist who currently lives and works in New York City.

Jungjin Lee was born in Korea in 1961. She studied calligraphy in childhood and majored in ceramics at Hongik University, graduating with a Bachelor’s of Fine Art in 1984. After graduating Lee worked as a photo journalist and later as a freelance photographer.