UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Just more than halfway through “100 Days of Alphabet,” a decade-long drawing project that explores immigrant assimilation, language, identity and erasure, Doah Lee, assistant professor of art in Penn State’s College of Arts and Architecture, will offer a glimpse of her work at A Space Gallery in Brooklyn, New York, from June 26-28.
An opening reception will be held from 6-8 p.m. on June 26, during which Lee will offer an artist’s talk starting at 6:30 p.m.
Through “100 Days of Alphabet,” Lee said she examines how language functions as both a tool for communication and a system of power that shapes belonging, exclusion and cultural identity. Each drawing in the project begins with a sheet of paper completely covered in graphite. Lee then uses an eraser to excavate language from the surface. This process of drawing and erasing serves as a metaphor for immigration, assimilation and the ways identity is shaped through systems of education, language and cultural expectations, Lee explained.
“The work reflects on my experiences as an immigrant learning English while also addressing broader questions about race, migration and social expectations,” said Lee, an interdisciplinary artist who emigrated to the United States from South Korea. “Through symbolic imagery and labor-intensive processes, I explore the tension between individual identity and the expectations imposed by cultural, political and educational structures.”
Lee explained that her artistic inquiry and practice focus on immigration, cultural translation, language, race, identity and the pressures of assimilation. Within those themes, Lee said a particular area of interest is how institutions and social systems shape our understanding of ourselves and others.
“100 Days of Alphabet” is inspired by two parallel structures: the Korean Dangun creation myth, in which a bear must endure 100 days in a cave to become human, and standardized grading systems that measure achievement and belonging, Lee explained.
“Beginning on Lunar New Year in 2020, I committed to creating three drawings every day in 100-day cycles, transforming the alphabet into a long-term performance of persistence, adaptation and reflection,” Lee said. “My practice combines conceptual drawing, repetition and endurance-based labor.”
The exhibition includes five large-scale framed works. Three works from 2020 represent the project's original structure titled “Alphabet, Hate Alphabet, and Asterisk Alphabet.” Two additional works from 2023 and 2025 demonstrate how the project has evolved over time and reveal significant conceptual shifts within the series, Lee said.
“I hope viewers of the exhibition’s works consider how language, education and social systems influence the ways we understand identity and belonging. The exhibition invites reflection on the often-invisible labor involved in assimilation and cultural adaptation,” Lee said. “Rather than offering simple answers, I hope the work creates space for conversations about immigration, racialized experiences and the complexity of navigating multiple cultures.”
Lee’s work and the exhibition are supported by the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture’s Research and Creative Activity Grant in Racial Justice, Anti-Discrimination and Democratic Practices.