Relatum : Lee Ufan au Palais des Papes

This summer, the Gothic monument, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, becomes the scene of a masterful encounter between sacred architecture and a work of rare spiritual intensity.
This international event is part of the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Korea, a celebration in which the City of Avignon is largely involved, echoing the Avignon Festival which has chosen Korean as the guest language for its 80th edition.

A global artist with Provençal roots
Born in Korea and having settled in Japan at the age of twenty, Lee Ufan now lives and works between Japan, France and the United States. A key figure on the international scene, whose works are featured in the world's greatest museum collections, he has a number of major projects in 2026. After landmark exhibitions at the Centre Pompidou-Metz and the Hamburger Bahnhof in Berlin, he has just inaugurated two large-scale projects in May, at St. Mark's Square in Venice and at Dia Beacon (New York).
His ties with Provence are deep and lasting. Arles is home, like Naoshima in Japan and Busan in Korea, to one of the three museums in the world dedicated to his work — located in the Hôtel Vernon.

“Relatum”: the power of dialogue and the sacred
The concept of Relatum, which gives its title to the installation, is at the heart of Lee Ufan's approach. This term refers to the relationship between elements, the poetic encounter between nature (stone, slate) and the manufactured (steel, aluminum), but also the invisible tension that is created between the work and its environment.

A unique experience, made of silence, philosophy and harmony, conceived by the artist as "a moment making us feel the breath of infinity".