Ulsan Art Museum will be hosting a screening for Nam June Paik: Moon is the Oldest TV, the first documentary film on the life and work of Nam June Paik. The museum was a partner in producing the documentary, which is currently a part of our official collection.
The documentary was compiled from the vast amount of written and audiovisual material related to Paik that is scattered throughout the three continents on which he worked and thus required the efforts of an international team of supporters. It was directed by Amanda Kim; produced by Jennifer Stockman, the President Emeritus of Guggenheim, and David Koh, an independent producer and former MoMA curator; narrated by Minari actor Steven Yeun; and embellished with the music of Fab 5 Freddy, a pioneer of street art/hip hop. Joseph Beuys, Charlotte Moorman, David Bowie, Merce Cunningham, and John Cage also provided invaluable assistance by speaking about Paik and his work.

Considering Paik’s importance in global cultural history, it may come as a surprise to many that it took so long for such a documentary about him to been made. The main reason for this, we believe, is the sheer logistics involved: primary resources on Paik are scattered across Asia, Europe, and North America in such large quantities and in so many languages that reading and translating them all required a great deal of time. Copyright issues and other difficulties associated with using images of Paik and his art were also major impediments. Considering the Herculean efforts that went into this documentary’s creation, we believe that it will play a major role in re-establishing the famous artist’s sociohistorical value.