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Nam June Paik

(Seoul, South Korea, 1932 - 2006, Miami, Florida)

Etching on Etching

From the series "V-IDEA"

1984

Etching on paper

18 5/8 x 21 3/4 in. (47.2 x 55.4 cm)

Collection of the Akron Art Museum

Museum Acquisition Fund

1990.22 h

More Information

Nam June Paik is considered the father of video art, best known for his work integrating sculpture and video with a focus on TV and other moving images as subject matter. In the print portfolio V-IDEA, the shape of the ink on paper mimics vintage TV screens. Contained within these “screens” are still images from Paik’s personal iconography—mementos of his Korean childhood and upbringing; a musical composition; and ideographs from and related to the Korean alphabet. These are merged with symbols and formal devices suggestive of the modern electronic age, such as color bars used at the beginning of tapes as screen tests, and solarized appropriated images of famous people.

Keywords
Etching
Television
Text in art