Hello

Nam June Paik!

We are Newbie

Artists

XR Docufiction

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SEUNG BEOM BAEK & ALEX SUNJU PARK

digi100vr@gmail.com / alexstorying@gmail.com

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# Nam June Paik said

"To further narrow the gap

between the audience and the artist,

is that not the 'essence of art'

and the 'essence of life'?"


-From Nam June Paik's interview at the 1995 Gwangju Biennale


Nam June Paik saw the central agent in his art

not as the creator, but as the audience

who experiences, appreciates, and enjoys the work.


He considered the smooth (two-way) communication

between artist and audience to be of utmost importance.


He was a staunch cultural democrat.

Hello

Nam June Paik!

We are Newbie

Artists

XR DocuFiction

Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists

# Description of the project

This XR docufiction, inspired by Nam June Paik,

explores the fusion of art and technology.

Utilizing contemporary new media, Paik redefined human interaction with technology, expanding artistic expression.

We invoked his spirit to reshape

how we communicate in media.

In this new XR space, your actions craft a new identity.


Who shaped your identity?

In 2025, your interactions in media will signify

your emergence as a newbie artist.

# Synopsis

"Hello, Nam June Paik. We are Newbie Artists"

is an XR docu-fiction inspired by Nam June Paik, who pioneered the fusion of art ​and technology. Using AI to recreate Paik's voice, this project guides participants ​through virtual spaces, reinterpreting his innovative artistic ideas. Users explore ​media evolution through Paik's lens in five interactive environments. Notably, real-​time webcam interactions fuse virtual and physical realities, reimagining Paik's ​vision of global communication. Participants experience identity transformation ​through media, becoming 'newbie artists' seeking contemporary artistic expression. ​This immersive documentary records and reinterprets Paik's artistic spirit through ​XR technology while prompting to envision the coming era of AI art.

#Statement


Nam June Paik enabled audiences to interact with media by physically engaging with the TV,

transforming them into active viewers and creators.

He continually moved to the next medium by breaking the unidirectional tools of communication.

Destruction is the mother of creation: from breaking instruments to creating TV, from breaking TV to the INTERNET...


So, what should we destroy and what should we move toward?

The rapid pace of technological advancement has deprived us of the time to ask and ponder these questions.


Therefore, we have created an opportunity in the virtual space to review the media of our time

and to properly confront the issues of social media that we have overlooked.

How has media transformed human life?

The art of the era of technological reproduction has lost its aura, and the art of the AI era may lose the status of the artist.

We may soon find ourselves creating automated art alongside AI.

So, what should we create?


This work is a performance and a delightful experiment by two immersive media artists who have long worked with VR media, mediating between the virtual and the real with the audience.

It is also a preface to the unknown new medium (AI) that has suddenly approached us.


# User Play Video

https://realityartlab.com/xr-hello-njp-playvideo

Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists

#Scene Details & ​Interaction Guide

Hello

Nam June Paik!

We are Newbie

Artists

Details





Media

Interaction

S#

Guide

AI Nam June Paik

#1) 1959, Homage a Namjune Paik

: Your Actions for Visible Music

  • You are an artist preparing to perform in a theatre. Follow the AI-generated voice of ​Nam June Paik and the sheet music on the piano as you practice and play to your ​heart's content. You can interact with the piano using the camcorder and violin on the ​desk, allowing for unconventional and free play. The audience cheers as you ​performance. This experience is a metaphorical re-creation of Paik's artistic vision, ​transcending traditional artistic and cultural conventions.

Interaction Guide

  • Try holding and playing with a camcorder, violin, or phone by pressing the grip buttons ​on the controller.
  • Use your virtual hands to press radio buttons.
  • Play while looking at the audience from time to time.
  • Your free-play will be recorded by the webcam.

#2) 1984, Good Evening MR Paik!

  • This scene recreates Nam June Paik's experimental approach to television. In a virtual ​living room, interact with the TV using a remote control. Turn on the TV, browse the ​schedule, and change channels as you wish. The TV responds to your actions in various ​ways, representing the evolving nature of TV as a medium - from one-way to interactive. ​At a specific moment, follow AI Nam June Paik's instructions to pick up a phone book and ​hit the TV to watch a special program. This program showcases a real-life version of your ​performance from Scene 1. The experience is an attempt to bridge the virtual and the real ​by projecting yourself onto the TV medium.

Interaction Guide

  • Press the trigger buttons on the controller to switch on the TV and change the channel.
  • Press the grip button to grab the phone book and hit the TV during the special screening. ​You can watch a webcam recording of S#1

#3) 2007, The Moon is Still Our TV

  • This space captures the evolution of identity and communication in the digital age, ​reinterpreting Nam June Paik's work. In this virtual exhibition, transform into a Buddha. ​Once transformed, use the mobile phone in your hand to take a selfie. The selfie you ​take is converted into an emoji and sent to the moon, the oldest media, via TV. This ​experience metaphorically simulates the modern media experience and the adoption of ​symbolic identities that are datafied and shared through the medium of the ​smartphone.

Interaction Guide

  • Get close to the Buddha statue.
  • When the mobile phone in your hand is activated, you can take four selfies by pressing ​the trigger button on the controller.
  • Try different compositions and poses.

#4) 2016, Shadows of the Moon

  • This is a world created by media. A media monster is coming towards you. The media monster ​and your body are connected by data beams and mirrored, reflecting each other.
  • When the Media Monster stops, you face two choices: press 0 to disconnect or 1 to destroy the ​Media Monster. This decision compels you to confront your relationship with media and yourself. ​The experience echoes Nam June Paik's prescient concerns, exploring crucial questions about ​identity formation, self-determination, consumption versus control, and technological ​autonomy in our digitally connected age.

Interaction Guide

  • The media monster and your body are mirrored.
  • You can press buttons on the game panel with your hands.
  • You can press trigger buttons to cut with scissors or shoot a laser gun.
  • Reach out to Media Monster

#5) The Present

  • This space embodies the relationship between art, technology, and creativity in the AI era, ​inspired by Nam June Paik's pioneering vision of art-technology fusion. Pick up the rock on ​the table and throw it towards the text. You become a newbie artist, creating and ​interacting within an environment of your making. This world is an automated world where ​virtual and real connect in real-time, with tools and environments in constant flux. As a ​newbie artist, what kind of art can you create and enjoy here? This experience offers a ​glimpse into the transformations AI technology may bring to the art world and artists.

Interaction Guide

  • Grab a rock with the grip buttons and throw it towards the text.
  • Try different interactions by holding a camcorder, remote control, or mobile phone with the ​grip button and pressing the trigger button.
  • Talk to yourself on the easel.

AI ·Immersive

MEDIA ARTIST

SEUNG BEOM BAEK

Biography

  • CEO & Director of RealityArtLab
  • Adjunct Professor, Department of Film Studies, Konkuk University
  • MFA in Visual Design, Hongik University
  • PhD student in AI immersive content, Hongik University
  • N-View (Webzin) Columnist https://n-view.kr/author/alex/

Filmography

  • 2024 [Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists] - Director
  • 2024 Any-Space-Whatever # Trapped Time, Flowing Sound (360 VR Video, 3D)
  • 2022 Bifan Beyond Reality [CinemaTech] (VR)
  • 2021 Bifan Beyond Reality [PEACE MAKERS] (VR)
  • 2019 Sitges Film Festival Cocoon Official Selection [Variety Reality] (VR)
  • 2019 Thessaloniki International Film Festival Official Selection [Variety Reality] (VR)
  • 2018 BIFAN VR VILLAGE KAFA+ [Variety Reality]
  • 2016 Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival [Just Scene#vol.1]
  • 2016 Film Fest Kosova Special screening [Just Scene#vol.1]
  • 2024 Hyper Eyes : See the future / @Hongik AI Museum[Artificial Emotion: JASP(AI Creation)]
  • 2023 <企投 Being-there International Invitational Exhibition by the Korean Society of Spatial ​Design> [#1. Elephant in the room (AI Creation)] @Future University Hakodate Museum, Japan

AI ·Immersive

MEDIA ARTIST

Alex Sunju Park

Biography

  • 24th Class of the Korean Academy of Film Arts (KAFA)
  • Technical Director for CGV ScreenX
  • Technical Director for VR Film Production Education, Korean Film Council
  • CEO of DigimotionVR
  • MFA in VR/AR Content, Hongik University
  • PhD student in AI immersive content, Hongik University

Filmography

  • 2024 [Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists] - Director
  • 2019 [Seonyu Julbulnori VR] - Production and Direction
  • 2019 [Slackline VR] - Production and Direction
  • 2018 [Anna, Mari Episode 1] - Cinematography
  • 2015 [Coin Locker Girl], [The Priests] - SCREEN-X Technical Director
  • 2014 [The Zombie Comic in Shinchon] - Stereographer
  • 2009 Feature Film [A World Without Women] - Cinematography
  • 2024 Hyper Eyes : See the future / @Hongik AI Museum [Infinite Space(AI Creation)]​

Hello Nam June Paik,

We are Newbie Artists

#Technical Detail

Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists

To run this project and have an optimal experience,

you will need two hardware preparations

1. Webcam camera device connected via USB

and recognised by Windows Device Manager

2. Either (1) Set up Dual Monitors on the PC running the project OR

(2) HDMI dummy plug connected

This project is optimised for MetaQuest 3 devices,

the controller's grip buttons allow you to grab objects the trigger buttons allow for various interactions.

Hello, Nam June Paik, We are Newbie Artists

Hello

Nam June Paik!

We are Newbie

Artists

SEUNG BEOM BAEK & ALEX SUNJU PARK

digi100vr@gmail.com / alexsunjupark@gmail.com

Copyright(c)2024 DigimotionVR & Realityartlab All rights reserved.

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EMAIL realityartlab@gmail.com

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