by Lee Price

Lee Price, *Lisa in Tub With Chocolate Cake,* oil on linen, 44 × 60 inches, 2009. Courtesy of the artist.

Self Portrait in Tub With Chinese Food

Lee Price | JAN 2026 | Issue 50

For the past thirty years my subject matter has focused on the theme of compulsive eating and the relationship between women and food. My paintings—mostly bird’s-eye views of women surrounded by luscious-looking desserts or the crumpled wrappers of a junk-food binge—are all self portraits. I paint myself in life-size scenes, indulging in “forbidden” foods: pints of ice cream, entire pies, a floor strewn with half eaten pastries. The scenes are often frenetic yet set in serene, private environments, typically bathrooms and bedrooms. The bird’s eye perspective creates a sense that the subject (me) is looking down on herself, watching herself in the act of a compulsive behavior, unable to stop. Repetitive patternstile floors beneath the tubs, the circular pattern on the shower curtain, plates, doughnuts, cupcakes and lemon slices—mirror and mimic the cycle of addictive behavior.

The scenes are beautiful, brightly colored, and outwardly joyful. The images are soft and beautiful, but they address disturbing subject matter. What at first glance looks like an afternoon tea party is, on closer inspection, revealed as a very lonely prison. The juxtaposition points the viewer toward the integration and inseparability of all aspects of experience, good and bad, lovely and harrowing, affliction and escape.

Lee Price, *Self Portrait in Tub With Chinese Food,* oil on linen, 44 × 44 inches, 2009. Courtesy of the artist.

Lee Price, *Ice Cream II*, oil on linen, 32 × 65 inches, 2010. Courtesy of the artist.

Lee Price, *Lemon Meringue* oil on linen, 32 × 72 inches, 2010. Courtesy of the artist.

Lee Price, *Grilled Cheese* oil on linen, 38 × 72 inches, 2010. Courtesy of the artist.

Lee Price was born in a small town in upstate NY in 1966. She lived in a household of all women. Growing up, she lived with her mother and two older sisters. Her father had left when she was young and, though he continued to live in the same town, was not a consistent presence in her life. Both grandfathers had passed away before she was born. No other male relatives lived nearby. All this has shaped her view of the world.

She attended Moore College of Art—an all women’s college. While there, she began to search for a better understanding of the causes of her own relationship with food and compulsive eating. Two books influenced her understanding of the nexus between gender issues and eating disorders: Susie Orbach’s Fat is a Feminist Issue and Kim Chernin’s The Hungry Self.

Lee’s work discusses women’s, mostly disordered, relationships with food, specifically compulsive eating disorders. The narrative of her career has been that of the evolution of this theme in and through her work; refining its focus and broadening its scope.

Lee currently lives in the Hudson Valley and is represented by Evoke Contemporary in Santa Fe, New Mexico.