CB: Where did you grow up and how has this influenced your art? <\/p>\n
Simon Lee: I was born in Beijing, China, and lived there until I was 10. Then I lived in Hong Kong for another 10 years before settling in the United States. My art is closely related to my life, so every cultural influence that I was ever exposed to has shaped my artistic language and expression. <\/p>\n
![\"Sculptor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/nTpp2eZWEPwBYYi6SKoXCb.jpg\")
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(Image credit: Simon Lee)CB: What, outside of art, has most influenced your work? <\/p>\n
SL: My art has always been a response to my life, so in a way art itself was least influential to me. Experience has always been the key driving force in the evolution of my art. <\/p>\n
CB: Are there any works you saw that changed everything? <\/p>\n
SL: I\u2019m a self-taught artist. I started sculpting on my own at age five, but growing up in a traditional Chinese family, the notion of becoming a full-time artist never entered my mind. I went to business school in college and majored in marketing. When I was 38 years old, I became a dad, and that was the wake-up moment for me to decide to truly value my passion and become a professional artist. <\/p>\n
My first project as a professional was as a concept designer for Guillermo del Toro, which started a decade-long explosion of self-reflective artistic growth and discoveries. In a way, the artwork that triggered all that was my child, the best creation I could ever create. <\/p>\n
![\"Sculptor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/7bDkkucLZmRViLXpddHR9Q.png\")
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(Image credit: Simon Lee)CB: Can you tell us about your first paid commission? <\/p>\n
SL: My first paid commission was a resin model created for the Shiflett Brothers. I did it when I was still a web designer and hobbyist sculptor. It was a representation of who I was at the time. I see all of my artwork that way: an almost photographic record of a moment in time from my artistic journey. <\/p>\n
CB: How does your art differ now? <\/p>\n
SL: I used to take days, weeks, and sometimes months to create a single piece. Now I can create something in minutes. I don\u2019t see my art as a singular being but rather as parts of a flowing stream. So the older artworks show where I was, and the current ones show where I am. I don\u2019t place too much attention on my work, but rather on what my art is telling me about my life. <\/p>\n
![\"Sculptor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/4kYcTdE2tkAHaNyc8vC3Xb.jpg\")
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(Image credit: Simon Lee)CB: Is making a living as an artist all you thought it would be? <\/p>\n
SL: For me, living is living. By diving deeper into my art, I delved deeper and deeper into my life. In my world, becoming better in one requires being better in the other. I can honestly say my art has made me a much better person. <\/p>\n
CB: What advice would you give to your younger self to aid you on the way? <\/p>\n
SL: My advice would be to keep an open mind. To get better at art, you\u2019d need to look outside of art. Expand your horizon, for art is both a reflection and a reaction to life. <\/p>\n
CB: How has the art industry changed for the better? <\/p>\n
SL: There is no absolute good or bad; that\u2019s always relative to the person you\u2019re talking to. For me, the industry just is, and my place in it. It\u2019s like an ocean: there\u2019s no good wave or bad wave, just waves. The question really is whether we can ride the waves. I certainly can. <\/p>\n
![\"Sculptor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/pE8YjurbkPQvaWRFamiQWb.jpg\")
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(Image credit: Simon Lee)CB: What character or scene that you\u2019ve painted do you most identify with? <\/p>\n
SL: All of them; they\u2019re all an extension of me. Just like I identify with all my fingers, they all serve a purpose. <\/p>\n
CB: What\u2019s your next step in art or life? <\/p>\n
SL: To continue growing as a person. Education doesn\u2019t end with school graduations or begin with class enrolments. I learn every day about life and myself. I have the technical skills to express myself artistically and use my art to communicate my emotions constantly. I want to keep growing and share my discoveries with as many people as I can. <\/p>\n
This content originally appeared in ImagineFX magazine, the world’s leading digital art and fantasy art magazine. ImagineFX is on sale in the UK, Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and more. Limited numbers of ImagineFX print editions are available for delivery from our online store<\/a> (the shipping costs are included in all prices).<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n