Kathy Goun Lee is a contemporary fiber artist born in Bad Kreuznach, Germany, raised in Los Angeles, California, and currently based in Sandy, Utah. She creates abstract sculptural works using wool as her primary medium. Her practice explores the psychology of personal and social narratives, shifting identities, and the insights that emerge through observation and stillness.
Her practice centers on the use of wool, jute, cotton, and other natural fibers to create contemporary abstract fiber sculptures. Through an iterative process of weaving and wrapping, she integrates wool with jute and interlaces wrapped fibers within woven structures to build layered, three-dimensional forms. A defining characteristic of her work is this technique of weaving through weaving, which expands traditional fiber practices into spatial compositions distinguished by depth, complexity, texture, and the expressive potential of natural materials.
Kathy Goun Lee’s work is guided by an inner creative impulse and a meditative process of exploration and reflection. Through the use of natural fibers, she examines the connection between human creativity and the natural world, reflecting on art as a fundamental expression of what distinguishes humanity from other living beings. By engaging with fiber’s historical associations with women’s labor and repositioning it within a contemporary artistic context, she seeks to expand its perception beyond traditional craft and highlight its capacity for personal, cultural, and artistic expression.