On the evening of September 3, as the electronic music band Idiotape performed, the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) resonated with cheers from the crowd. With the music intensifying, the massive silver exterior of DDP, adorned with Nam June Paik's media art, began to pulse in rhythm. People gathered in the plaza swayed to the beat.
The night was a celebration of Paik's vision of communication through technology, as his work 'The More, The Better' came alive with light, sound, and audience movement.
This year, Seoul Light DDP has evolved beyond a mere 'viewing screen' to transform the entire space into a 'performance venue.' Collaborating with the Nam June Paik Art Center and the Seoul Museum of Art, the event reinterprets the artistic worlds of Nam June Paik and Yoo Young-kuk through media art, integrating live music with lasers, AI visuals, and lighting.
Nam June Paik's Groove... More Joyful Together in 'The More, The Better'
At this year's Seoul Light DDP, standing still is not an option. As night falls, DDP transforms into a massive performance venue. When 'The Break Point' by Nam June Paik begins, the lights and visuals covering the DDP facade dance to the DJ's powerful beats. This marks the debut of a 'live media performance' at DDP.
The media art label Burstdays, in collaboration with the Nam June Paik Art Center, has modernized Paik's iconic work 'Global Groove,' allowing the visuals on the DDP exterior to change in real-time to the music created by the DJ. The global groove danced across the curved facade of DDP.
'Global Groove' is a video work that aired at 10:30 p.m. on Channel 13 of the American public broadcasting system in 1973, rapidly editing together dance and music from various cultures, including rock and roll, tap dance, and Korean fan dance. Paik aimed to transform television, a one-way medium, into an open space for audience and artist participation by freely altering the color, shape, and movement of images using a video synthesizer.
Kim Yoon-seo, head of the curatorial research team at the Nam June Paik Art Center, stated, "Nam June Paik used television as a canvas and broadcast waves as a brush. The video experiments that could be seen at home through a cathode ray tube can now be experienced by a new generation of audiences at DDP, a cultural hub in Seoul, half a century later."
This synergy between Paik's media art and Idiotape's performance became even more pronounced. For about 40 minutes, Idiotape's music, including 'Melodie,' surged as Paik's colors and images vibrated. DDP transformed into a colossal standing performance venue. Until September 13, media art will respond in real-time to the music and performances of various artists, including Zion, Hypnosis Therapy, and Soulscape.
Jade-Colored Lasers and White Circles
This year, the newly introduced laser art 'DDP 365 Light' by Yoon Je-ho awakened traces of the past in the historic exhibition hall. Jade-colored lasers sliced through the air, enveloping the plaza's sky like thin silk, blending traditional percussion, electronic sounds, AI visuals, lighting, and the movements of dancers. Foreign visitors were captivated by the white curves swirling in the wind as the dancers spun their hats.
'In Search of the Mountain Within Me' by Yoo Young-kuk unfolded the 'mountain' he has contemplated throughout his life on the organic curves of DDP, while 'The Night When Words Shine' from Cheongguyoungwon presented natural landscapes from traditional poetry as digital landscapes.
The event runs until September 13.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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