The Museum Ludwig in Cologne has announced Korean artist Lee Ufan as the recipient of its 2026 Wolfgang Hahn Prize. Now in its 32nd edition, the annual prize honors internationally acclaimed artists who remain comparatively underrepresented in Germany.  

Born in 1936 and based between Kamakura and Paris, Lee is an artist, writer, and philosopher celebrated for his minimalist paintings and sculptural installations that foreground process, materiality, and spatial relationships. A foundational figure of both the Dansaekhwa (Korean monochrome painting) movement and Japan’s Mono-ha (School of Things) group in the 1960s, Lee has played a pivotal role in shaping the trajectory of contemporary Asian art. His ongoing series Relatum (1972– ), which examines the interdependence of matter, viewer, time, and space, has been widely exhibited and collected across the world.

In a statement, Mami Kataoka, director of Tokyo’s Mori Art Museum and this year’s guest juror, remarked, “Over the course of his 60-year career, [Lee] has explored the essential meaning of existence in all relationships that transcend East and West—without following Western modernism or retreating into Eastern spiritual traditions.” 

The award ceremony will take place on November 6, 2026, followed by a five-month solo exhibition at the museum. Up to EUR 100,000 (USD 116,000) will also be allocated for the acquisition of Lee’s works for the museum’s collection. 

Yuqian Fan is an editorial intern at ArtAsiaPacific.