Nam June Paik
Korea, b. 1932

Nam June Paik (nam joon pike) was born in Seoul, Korea, on July 20, 1932. He is a
South Korean video and performance artist, musician, sculptor, filmmaker, writer,
and teacher.

From 1952 to 1956, he studied music and aesthetics at the University of Tokyo. He
then moved to Germany, where he studied at the Ludwig-Maximillians Universität in
Munich.

His Neo-Dada performances in Cologne included a celebrated encounter with John
Cage, during which he formed a lasting friendship with the avant-garde composer by
cutting his tie. In 1954, he moved to New York and began a long performing
partnership with cellist Charlotte Moorman. He is said to have acquired the first of
the new Sony® portable video recorders and made his first recording in a taxi.