Nam June Paik’s Robot K-456, which first encountered the world in 1964, had traveled through Europe and the United States meeting various people. In a street performance titled Robot Opera, Paik controlled the robot’s movements remotely, while Charlotte Moorman played the cello, performing opera alongside the robot. The robot, which immigrated to the United States, made sounds, walked the streets of New York, and contributed to the market economy in a way creating labor market, leading a diverse life. On a summer day in 1982, while crossing the street in front of the museum in New York, the robot met its end in a traffic accident dubbed The First Catastrophe of the 21st Century. Since then, its presence cannot be seen on the streets, but today, we can still encounter a robot waiting for us inside the museum.
Robot Opera