Gabrielle Fernandez

Visual Analysis

Twenty-First Century Route 66

Sixty-three-year-old, Nam June Paik, balanced from twenty-foot scaffolding to configure the
three hundred sixty-six televisions and six hundred feet of neon it took to frame his largest statement
(Paik). Electronic Super Highway: Continental U.S., Alaska, and Hawaii is a visual metaphor that uses
movement, rhythm and lines to show how the media can shape one mans shallow perception of a diverse
nation.
Paik immigrated to the U.S. from South Korea when he was thirty-two years old. In New York
City, he was swept into the artist coterie of the Neo-Dada era and emerged as the father of video art
(Hanhardt). Like other artists from this group, Paik formed his creations through the use of mass media
and found objects. He viewed the television screen as his canvas and he believed that its versatility would
allow him to shape his art as precisely as Leonardo and as freely as Picasso (Hanhardt). With an array
of abandoned TVs and electric components, he manifested his mental images into an Electronic
Superhighway, a term he originally coined in a 1974 proposal (Media Planning for the Postindustrial
Society). Paiks futuristic mindset moved him to integrate modern technology and art during a time
when visual media had begun to be a central presence within American homes. Electronic Super

Gabrielle Fernandez

Visual Analysis

Highway: Continental U.S., Alaska, and Hawaii, 1995, emulates the effect that this informative presence
has on the viewers awareness.
Permanently on display in the Lincoln Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the
massive United States stretches forty-feet long and towers over spectators at fifteen feet. Each state is
bordered by bright pulsing neon and filled with an assortment of TVs. The segmented TVs are connected
to fifty different DVD players that simultaneously loop visual and audio reels, as a representation of
contrasting state identity. The screens, in union with the neon, illuminate the dimly lit gallery with a
wattage as memorable as Times Square. At first glance, the piece appears to be of mammoth proportions
because it offers viewers a brimming platter of American culture to absorb. The bolting movement might
overtake the viewers sight as their eyes strain to hold glimpses of recognizable footage, but connotations
will arise from the chaos. In Kansas, scenes from the The Wizard of Oz can be recognized, and in
Oklahoma, Roger and Hammersteins Oklahoma! (Broun). These classic films, along with Missouris
Meet Me in St. Louis, are the only clips in the piece that were not created by Paik himself (Broun). Some
states contain a blinking set of images, as your mind might call on multiple symbols when a state is
mentioned in conversation or by the media. For insistence, Texas features a cactus, a cowgirl, and a clip
from the Branch Davidian burning (Broun). These images are looping with a high rate of change which
can make the symbolism difficult to identify. Observers might feel compelled to zone in on each state
individually to order to decipher the fleeting messages.
An important idea to keep in mind when analyzing this piece is that Paik chose his film based on
his media-based impression of each state. The images the artist chose to feature is not a depiction of his
only knowledge of the regions, as it would be less effective to display his every thought and experience
tied to each state. Across the piece, Paik maintains focus on the perception the media paints, not only for
naturalized Americans but for anyone exposed to American culture. Electronic Super Highway:
Continental U.S., Alaska, and Hawaii is a rhythmic portrait that streams only the artists initial thoughts, a
stereotypical visual manifested by the media. The sound flowing from the piece is as impactful as the
radiating light and color. The film clips are accompanied by full audio which is released into the gallery
to create a layer of sound fifty levels deep. At first, the audio is a blurred cadence of singing, clanking,
music, and static. From the capering wavelengths rings the bellowing voice of Dr. Martin Luther King,
who can be found inside the black and white televisions within Alabama. The audio element enhances
the symbolism for this piece, especially when a voice or song is as recognizable as the referenced image.
Across the country in California, notions of rising technological development are represented by the
raining pings of passing zeroes and ones. The pings shift into an upbeat tune as O.J. Simpson appears on
the screens casted as the leader of a workout class filled with blonde, tanned women. Even though this

Gabrielle Fernandez

Visual Analysis

particular mashup is collectively humorous, serious undertones can be caught from the idea that O.J.
Simpson was in fact an accused murderer whose case turned into daytime entertainment for many people.
Paiks use of audio helped him to achieve mixed moods of sorrow, nostalgia, and humor by uniting
diverse visuals and tracks to create one, powerful rhythm.
Once the viewer is able to peel through the audio and video layers of this piece, they are left with
flickering neon lines. Paik uses lines to distinguish the areas from one another both culturally and
geographically. Before television achieved its strong presence throughout American homes, the typical
way to experience a states culture was to load up the family vehicle and hit the highway. As hinted by
the title, the media has created an Electric Superhighway that has allowed people to gather knowledge and
experiences from variety of places without vacating the comfort of their home. The catch of this
convenience is that information solely gathered though this medium will produce only a partial or shallow
understanding of a place or subject. Adding further meaning to the use of lines, the artist chose to place a
triple layer of neon tubing alongside the Mississippi River. The river acts as a strong border between
states at the threshold to the West from the East. This emphasis is tied to the deeper meaning of the piece
because traditionally the United States is thought to be divided into northern and southern entities. By
highlighting the directional shift in the divide, Paik alludes to progression towards future. The west has
always been a symbol of development for the United States, growing from the countries early focus on
Manifest Destiny. This piece directly broadcasts the achievements and advancements that have been
made past the Mississippi River. The motivation behind forward thinking can be linked to increasing
information accessibility, which has been aided by the recorded documentation produced by the media.
A South Korean immigrant, aged sixty-three years, wrestled with thirty-seven hundred feet of
cable and six hundred feet of neon, to colossally expose the shallow effect the media has on its viewers
perceptions (Paik). Nam June Paik expressed his ideas through the use of bustling movement,
disorganized rhythm, and boundary lines. In Electronic Super Highway: Continental U.S., Alaska, and
Hawaii, the art cannot be found within the film housed by the televisions, but rather in the collective
movement and rhythm linked together as one chaotic display of diversity.

Gabrielle Fernandez

Visual Analysis

Works Cited
Broun, Betsy. "Exploring the Electronic Superhighway." Interview by Lynn Neary. National Public
Radio. National Public Radio, 4 July 2006. Web. 19 March 2016.
Hanhardt, John G. Nam June Paik. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art in Association with
W.W. Norton, 1982. Print.
Paik, Nam June. Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii. 1995. Smithsonian
American Art Museum. American Art. Web. 19 March 2016.
---. "Media Planning for the Postindustrial Society The 21st Century Is Now Only 26 Years Away."
Media Art Net. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 March 2016.