Lee ShinJa (b. 1930) is a pioneering first-generation Korean fiber artist and educator. During the 1950s and ’60s, when working with thread and fabric was considered domestic labor, Lee broke new ground in the evolution of Korean craft. Against the conventions of traditional craft, she experimented with modern formal techniques, driving innovations in embroidery, dyeing, weaving, and tapestry to expand the breadth and depth of the genre, which at the time was still unestablished.

By the 1970s, Lee fully embraced tapestry techniques. Due to limitations in sourcing materials at the time, she cleverly repurposed fibers from wool sweaters and thread from bedding. When she was exposed to the works of international fiber artists at the 1970 Osaka World Expo in Japan, and later the 1983 Lausanne International Tapestry Biennial in Switzerland, she found the confidence to expand her practice into unique sculptural forms and installations.

Resurrection (1975), created during the prolonged illness of her husband, painter Jang Woon-Sang (1926–1982), is a profound expression of religious yearning and hope. The work embodies Lee’s deep reflection on life, mortality, and the enduring spirit of existence. Its vertical composition centers on a circular figure rendered in muted grays and whites, set against contrasting geometric fields. The central form seems to ascend or emerge, with outstretched arms extending into flowing, fringed elements that resemble wings or drapery cascading downward. This spiritual and contemplative dimension reveals how Lee’s personal circumstances transformed her typically geometric abstractions into a moving meditation on faith, renewal, and the resilience of the human spirit.