1 + 3 ≠ 4

dmincubator 

New York, NY

October 2026

Paintings by So Lee and Ellen de Meijer engage in a playful dialogue and a sincere reflection about the joy of discovery and accumulation in a duo exhibition titled, “1 + 3 ≠ 4,” at dmincubator. Curated by Daniela Mercuri, the exhibition features three works by So Lee and one painting by Ellen de Meijer, with an opening reception on October 1, from 6 to 8 pm.

Throughout life, people have hobbies in collecting, and the artifacts that they come to possess carry meanings and stories. Sometimes we receive the objects as gifts. Other times, we treat ourselves to the acquisition for self pleasure in pursuit of immediate gratification or investment for the future, seeking delayed gratification. 

So Lee makes paintings that visually and psychologically explore childhood and domestic environments. In the paintings presented at this exhibition, Lee’s protagonists all engage with discovery or accumulation of objects or experiences; for example, “Ornaments” (2025) and “Post Cards” (2025) depict a child touching a box of Christmas ornaments and looking through a pile of post cards. These objects carry religious symbolism and iconography, as well as aesthetic experience, all of which contribute to the formation of memory and early psychology during childhood. 

Ellen de Meijer paints portraits of modern-day archetypes, as an expression of our collective struggles and lies, involving status and power, loss of authenticity and innocence, resistance, consumerism, competition, technology, and material wealth. In “Mining Crush” (2021), an investor sits on a sculpture or a mechanical manifestation of a golden bull with a miner’s headlamp aglow, and wears a necklace with the bitcoin symbol on it. As an archetype, the man appears confident yet tethered to the volatile market forces beyond control. 

Amongst the three and one works by So Lee and Ellen de Meijer, respectively, we find a conversation about discovery and accumulation headed in opposite directions of the positive and the negative. So Lee’s paintings highlight the small encounters in the distant early years of our existence, which give us meaning and a sense of identity. Ellen de Meijer carries meaning in the opposite spectrum, in which the sense of identity for the investor is on shaky ground and meaning is much harder to extract. 

The lesson that we can learn from the dialogue between the works of these two artists is that the desire for material and financial gain within capitalism may not provide true meaning and happiness. Only the right person with the right posture and sensibility may discover and accumulate happiness and wonder, if they hold dear the very state of existence with gratitude and an innocent heart.