33 Keys to Understanding the Korean Wave, Hallyu #24 Nam June Paik 

#24 ‘Godfather of video art’ Nam June Paik and his descendants

 

 

*Note to Readers

The columns published in the Zoom section of NYCultureBeat contain selected excerpts—typically the opening paragraphs—from each chapter of the book 33 Keys to Understanding the Korean Wave: Beyond BTS, Parasite, and Squid Game (2025). These previews are meant to introduce the book’s themes and tone.

 

The complete book—featuring 33 updated chapters and new cultural insights—is available in both paperback and hardcover editions:

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Nam June Paik 1983, Photo by Young-kyun Lim

 

“I want to shape the TV screen canvas as precisely as Leonardo, as freely as Picasso, as colorfully as Renoir, as profoundly as Mondrian, as violently as Pollock and as lyrically as Jasper Johns.”

-Nam June Paik, 1969-

It is unknown when humans began drawing pictures or making sculptures. It’s just an ancient thing. However, no one disputes the date of birth of video art. Video art was born in March 1963, and was created by Nam June Paik (1932-2006). Paik, who studied aesthetics, music history, and philosophy at the Universities of Tokyo, Munich, and Cologne, became a pivotal figure in the avant-garde movement. After encountering American composer John Cage (1912–1992) and German artist Joseph Beuys (1921–1986) in Germany, he became a leading participant in Fluxus—an experimental art movement that blurred the boundaries between art, performance, and everyday life.

 

Nam June Paik opened his first solo exhibition, “Exposition of Music-Electronic Television,” in March 1963 at Galerie Parnass in the West German city of Wuppertal. Using 13 used TV sets as monitors, Paik presented a striking optical pattern, marking the debut of the first video art showcased by the “culture terrorist from Asia.”

 

The following year, Nam June Paik moved to New York. At the time, the New York art world was dominated by abstract expressionism and pop art. Curators were not interested in foreign artists. Nam June Paik even self-deprecatingly called himself a “yellow peril.” He once said, “I was a poor man from a poor country, so I had to make people happy at every moment.”

 

 

 

24. Nam June Paik and His Descendants   341

The Pioneer of Video Art    341

The Artists Nam June Paik Inspired   343

Joan Jonas: Bridging Performance and Video Art   343

Bruce Nauman: Breaking Boundaries   344

Bill Viola: Video Art as Meditation    345

Tony Oursler: Video Sculpture    346

Christian Marclay: Cinematic Video Art   347

Doug Aitken: Alienation in Motion  348

Pipilotti Rist: Immersive Video Installation   349

Theresa Hak Kyung Cha: Avant-Garde Feminist   350

Nam June Paik: The Legacy of a Visionary   351