Explore the ground-breaking work of 20th-century, avant-garde artist Nam June Paik, the pioneer of video art, and discover his impact on the digital age.
Nam June Paik was one of the most presciently visionary artists of his generation, one who foresaw the ascendance of the screen in modern life, coined the phrase "electronic superhighway", and celebrated these developments with a humor and whimsy that counteracts some of the darker aspects of our technological age. This book features works from throughout Paik's five-decade career--from robots made from old TV screens to stills from his innovative video works and views of his renowned room-sized installations. Archival materials and excerpts of Paik's own writings offer a deeper understanding of the artist's extraordinary collaborative career. He had exchanges with avant-garde artists, musicians, and choreographers, including Charlotte Moorman, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Joseph Beuys, and members of the Fluxus movement. Essays explore how Paik influenced a global network of artists and pioneered a radical and cutting-edge art practice. They also consider how Paik's transnational approach to art presaged today's issues around borders, immigration, cultural appropriation, and nationalism. By envisioning a future that has become a reality, Paik's work--and its humanity, scope, and optimism--is perhaps more important than ever.
Considered to be the founder of video art, Nam June Paik (1932- 2006) was a visionary artist who foresaw the importance of mass media and new technology, and its impact on visual culture. His cutting-edge, innovative, yet playfully entertaining work continues to be a major influence on art and culture to this day. This ground-breaking publication focuses on Paik's pivotal role in the cross-germination of radical aesthetics and experimental practices, emphasising his visionary insight and his pioneering role in the emergence and proliferation of performative and collaborative art practice. Bringing together works that span a fivedecade career, and including archival materials and excerpts of Paik's own writings, this book offers an in-depth understanding of the artist's innovative practice and his vision of a multidisciplinary future. His ideas such as `Eurasia' and `Electronic Superhighway', and his profound insight into a global age will be analysed in the context of transnationalism for the first time. In addition, texts will elaborate upon Paik's collaborations with other artists, musicians and choreographers, such as Charlotte Moorman, John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Joseph Beuys and Fluxus, highlighting Paik's global trajectory and considerable impact on digital culture, which connect his art to a new generation. Publisher: Tate Publishing ISBN: 9781849766357 Number of pages: 176