Good Morning Mr. Orwell is the first international satellite “installation”; it “was intended as a liberating and multi-directional alternative to the threat posed by ‘Big Brother’ surveillance that George Orwell warned of in his novel 1984, first published in 1949. Paik explained that, ‘Orwell only emphasized the negative part, the one-way communication. I see video not as a dictatorial medium, but as a liberating one. That’s what this show is about, to be a symbol of how satellite television can cross international borders and bridge enormous cultural gaps… the best way to safeguard against the world of Orwell is to make this medium interactive so it can represent the spirit of democracy, not dictatorship.'”^[1]

This installation “linked France, Germany and the U.S. The event featured vibrant performances by Laurie Anderson, Merce Cunningham, Peter Gabriel and Allen Ginsberg, among many others.”^[2]

The videos below excerpt from Good Morning Mr. Orwell which was broadcast on New Years Day 1984.

[1] Edward A. Shanken, Art and Electronic Media, p.34

[2] http://www.eai.org/eai/title.htm?id=581