Nam June Paik

Nam June Paik manipulates colour and black and white televisions to portray his theme. His objective through using the television is to make the TV set itself, not just by using what is shown on the screen but by using the screen and the box as a sculpture. In one exhibition, the main attraction was the thirteen part video sculpture My Faust(1989-1991). He used thirteen stations to correspond to the thirteen New York cable TV channels. The represented stations represented subjects of the world, such as education and agriculture. Each station grouped the screens ornamented neo-Gothic construction, which was inspired by the thirteen Stations of the Cross. All thirteen stations have its own subject but at the same time shows a part of his biography. He uses objects to show parts of his personality, such as a rumpled shirt, which symbolizes how little he is concerned with his personal appearance. Not only does he include his own personality into his theme but he also includes how he sees global subject matter. He uses art to show people how the world changes and transforms, and how to understand the changes.

In Eagle Eye, the spirit of Zen and the changing dynamics of American society inspired Paik. He has integrated new technology into an expressive style of art. This assemblage is made up of nine computers and keyboards, forming the wings and feathers. An eye chart, projector and obsolete technologies are used for the body. The blue neon light shows the atmospheric space of the eagle. The video is a collage of images flashing onto the screen. The images include the earth, a solar eclipse, and American missiles.

TV Garden is scene or assemblage that represents nature and technology. It is the first large art piece, which uses state-of-the-art equipment. Monitors are placed lying on their backs with tropical plants surrounding the monitors. On every screen a scene from a tape called " Global Groove" is played. Global Groove is a collage of different kinds of material. The voice-over in the introduction by Russel Connor explains the message. It states "This is a view of a new world, in which it will be possible to switch on any television program on the planet, and in which TV-program guides will be thicker than the Manhattan telephone book." The message of TV Garden is about the future of worldwide communication and how it will be used by all nations.

The collection of eighteen televisions is called "TV Clock". Paik used the eighteen television sets to show the hours of the day. Each television has hands that show the division of the clock face into twelve daytime hours and twelve nighttime hours. Paik's message is the fact of measuring time with a static measurement tool. The ability to measure time is a great accomplishment because time is a natural phenomenon. By using the televisions to show time, it shows the worlds changing ways of measuring this phenomenon.