Nam June Paik was born in 1932 in Seoul Korea. He has studied art history, music and philosophy in Tokyo, at Darmstadt and in Germany, respectively. He operated the video equipment for Radio Cologne, a studio that specializes in electronic music. Throughout the 1960′s and into the 70′s he was the artist in residence for many New York television studios and was associated with the NY group, Fluxus. This month at the James Cohan Gallery, an exhibit of his most important and innovative works will be presented and should not be missed. Many of the best restaurants Manhattan offers are in the neighborhood of the gallery, and dinner and show is one of the best ways to spend a New York summer evening.
The exhibition contains his work from the early 1970′s through 1994. There are sculptures created with video, live feed video installations, and the famous robot sculptures he created. He is known as the father of the techniques and artistry of the video world. He has worked with other great video pioneers such as Charlotte Moorman, Joseph Beuys, and John Cage. He balances technology’s pragmatism with philosophical ideas of Utopia, and is known for the ideas he has inspired over the years in the public masses that cause one to consider objects and reality.
He had long had a scientific interest in electronic and technological communication, which inspired his predictions of the affects technology would one day have on daily life. Among his concepts, he coined the phrase “electronic super-highway”, before it even existed, foreshadowing and predicting the way that technology connects various cultures and countries throughout the world at high rates of speed. This was all thought of during the time before the Internet revolution. Paik passed away in 2006 and will be remembered through his works that he leaves behind and for the ideas he inspired in all of those familiar with the man and his artistry.
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