A major exhibition dedicated to pioneering media artist Nam June Paik will open in Seoul this spring, marking the first presentation of the artist’s work to be presented by the Estate of Nam June Paik in Seoul his birthplace in 25 years.
Titled Rewind / Repeat, the exhibition is presented by Gagosian in collaboration with the artist’s estate. It opens on 1st April 2026 at the APMA Cabinet, a project space inside the headquarters of Amorepacific. Designed by David Chipperfield, the building hosts the presentation in its ground-floor gallery space.
Spanning Paik’s groundbreaking career, the exhibition brings together historic works alongside rarely seen and previously unexhibited pieces. Among the highlights is TV Bra for Living Sculpture (1969), a clear vinyl garment fitted with two small television monitors originally created for cellist and performance artist Charlotte Moorman. First worn during a performance in New York in 1969, the work transformed the television into an extension of the human body, responding visually to the sounds of Moorman’s cello.
Another key work on view is For London and Abroad (Mailbox) (1982), alongside later pieces such as Bakelite Robot (2003), a sculptural assemblage of vintage radios modified to display video footage drawn from science-fiction films and recordings of mechanical toys. The exhibition also includes Gold TV Buddha (2005), part of Paik’s iconic TV Buddha series, in which a gilded Buddha statue meditates before its own live video feed—an image that reflects Paik’s enduring interest in the intersection of spirituality, technology and cultural exchange.
Born in Seoul in 1932, Paik studied music and art at the University of Tokyo before moving to West Germany in the 1950s, where he became associated with the radical avant-garde movement Fluxus. After relocating to New York in the 1960s, he began incorporating television, video and electronic media into his work, helping to redefine the possibilities of art in the age of mass communication.
Often referred to as the father of video art, Paik anticipated many of the technological and cultural shifts that shape contemporary media today. By merging performance, sculpture, sound and broadcast technology, he created a practice that explored how images circulate and how technology reshapes human experience.
Alongside Paik’s well-known works, Rewind / Repeat also features early experimental projects including Media Sandwich (1961–64), an installation combining electronics magazines, Japanese vinyl records and printed imagery, reflecting the moment when the artist began moving away from musical composition toward a new language of media art.
Bringing together works from across Paik’s career, the exhibition revisits the artist’s visionary exploration of technology, communication and culture—returning his pioneering experiments in video and electronic media to the city where his story began.
NAM JUNE PAIK, Rewind / Repeat, April 1st–May 16th, 2026 APMA Cabinet, Amorepacific Headquarters
Opening reception: Wednesday, April 1st, 5PM–7PM
