Masquerade 55 deepens Lee Gihun’s evocative narrative of environmental and emotional reckoning through surreal symbolism and stark tonal contrasts. At the heart of this image stands a small figure donning a cartoonish animal head—equal parts absurd and poignant—perched atop a flooded roof in a submerged city. With water engulfing the built environment and infrastructure collapsing under pressure, the lone figure holds a red umbrella, an act of childlike defiance or foresight amid looming catastrophe.

This work continues the artist’s quiet yet urgent meditation on humanity’s fragile place within an unstable ecological order. The flooded cityscape is not merely a setting but a psychological space—echoing the consequences of collective denial and inaction. The only one prepared is the child, a symbol of innocence, clarity, and perhaps the hope that remains when all else has been submerged.

Rooted in Korean visual culture and spiritual values that see children as messengers and protectors of purity, the painting speaks to a moral clarity often lost in adult complexity. Lee uses this lone figure to confront us with the consequences of forgetting—forgetting nature, forgetting responsibility, forgetting to care. Masquerade 55 is a haunting reminder that, in the face of existential threats, wisdom may lie in the unheeded simplicity of a child’s gesture.