Nam June Paik Library
| Location |
| Nam June Paik Art Center, Yong-In, Korea |
| Client |
| Gyunggi Cultural Foundation |
| Status |
| Completed, April 2011 |
| Program |
| Museum/Gallery, Cultural, Institution, Public Space |
| Size |
| 1180 SQFT |
| Recognition |
| 2012 AIANY Design Honor Award |
growing peri-urban city south of Seoul. The library collects, preserves, and provides access to historical and contemporary material related to Nam June Paik, his art, and the Fluxus movement, and offers scholars a space for professional research, and the local community an open forum for cultural engagement and production. The library houses and circulates the Center's Nam June Paik Archives Collection, Nam June Paik Video Archives, and rare Fluxus Footage Collection, as well as user-generated materials.
Inspired by Nam June Paik’s artistic processes and his concept of “Random Access,” the library was designed as a multi-functional spatial device that redefines the relationship between library users and information. While the conventional library is characterized by one-directional transmission and often passive reception of information, the Nam June Paik Library aims to promote non-linear access to knowledge. Instigating production of information beyond consumption, the Library advocates spontaneous expression and juxtaposition of ideas.
The central structure “Library Machine” actively deploys the architectural and programmatic strategies of: 1. Scattering/Juxtaposition, 2. Non- Textual /Off -Site Content, 3. Physical Engagement, 4. Incorporated Production Spaces, 5.Representational Interfaces, and 6. A Mobile Propagation Unit to this end, while transforming the formerly vacant and inaccessible space within the institution into a much-needed public space. The design aims to make the intangible physical and turn a personal experience into a collective, interactive one. Through the Library, content becomes dynamic, and the consumer of information becomes the producer. The collective generation and appreciation of information makes the library experience multi-directional and reciprocal.
The design and construction of the library were made possible by the City of YongIn and Gyeoggi Province Government's Small Library Fund.
Photography: Nam June Paik Art Center
| Project Team: Nahyun Hwang, David Eugin Moon |