Nam June Paik
Nam June Paik (Korean: 백남준; RR: Baek Nam-jun; July 20, 1932 – January 29, 2006) was a Korean artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the founder of video art. He is credited with the first use (1974) of the term "electronic super highway" to describe the future of telecommunications.
Nam June Paik | |
|---|---|
Nam June Paik in New York City in 1983 | |
| Born | July 20, 1932 |
| Died | January 29, 2006 (aged 73) Miami, Florida, U.S. |
| Nationality | Korean, American |
| Education | University of Tokyo, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich |
| Known for | Video art, performance, installation art |
| Movement | Fluxus |
| Spouse | |
| Relatives | Jinu (grandson) Ken Paik Hakuta (nephew) |
| Awards | Geumgwan Order of Cultural Merit (2007) |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 백남준 |
| Hanja | 白南準 |
| Revised Romanization | Baek Namjun |
| McCune–Reischauer | Paek Namjun |
Born in Seoul to a wealthy business family, Paik trained as a classical musician, spending time in Japan and West Germany, where he joined the Fluxus collective and developed a friendship with experimental composer John Cage. He moved to New York City in 1964 and began working with cellist Charlotte Moorman to create performance art. Soon after, he began to incorporate televisions and video tape recorders into his work, acquiring growing fame. A stroke in 1996 left him partially paralyzed for the last decade of his life.