{"id":4702,"title":"Experimental Television Center, LTD.: Chronological History of the Center: 1969-present","kind":"biblio","url":"https://www.videohistoryproject.org/chronological-history-center-1969-present","version":"039581c3c6931455e347dcf62c5734112667f2fcde328a2f4b585bfcab7ce759","modified":"2026-09-13T21:52:08.1948787+00:00","credits":[],"authorKeys":[],"subjects":["Groups"],"metadata":[{"label":"Group dates","value":"1971 - present","url":null},{"label":"Group location","value":"Owego, New York","url":null},{"label":"Group","value":"Experimental Television Center, LTD.","url":null}],"citations":{"page":"\u0022Chronological History of the Center: 1969-present.\u0022 Video History Project, Experimental Television Center, 2026. https://www.videohistoryproject.org/chronological-history-center-1969-present.","publication":"Chronological History of the Center: 1969-present. .","risUrl":"https://www.videohistoryproject.org/citation/4702.ris"},"links":[{"label":"A Chronological History","url":"#A Chronological History","relationship":"record body link","contentType":null},{"label":"Experimental Television Center","url":"http://www.experimentaltvcenter.org","relationship":"record body link","contentType":null},{"label":"Experimental Television Center: Programs 2004-05 (pdf)","url":"https://www.videohistoryproject.org/sites/default/files/history/pdf/ETCReport200405paginated.pdf","relationship":"record body link","contentType":null}],"sections":[{"name":"body","source":"VHP record body","generated":false,"characters":143977},{"name":"summary","source":"existing VHP generated summary","generated":true,"characters":830}],"content":{"section":"body","source":"VHP record body","generated":false,"text":"1971-72 Funding was received from the New York State Council on the Arts for construction of the Paik/Abe Video Synthesizer. One system was designed and built in 1972 at the Center by Shuya Abe and Nam June Paik for eventual placement at the TV Lab at WNET-TV. This system was used while still at the Center by the TV Lab, including David Loxton, John Godfrey and Russell Connor, to produce a portion of Paik\u2019s \u201CThe Selling of New York\u201D, included in the PBS series Carousel, broadcast in 1972 by WNET. \u201CSelling of New York\u201D became a part of WGBH and WNET\u2019s production \u201CTribute to John Cage\u201D as well as the opening segment for \u201CMy Shuttle - New York - Moscow,\u201D a collaboration with Dmitri Devyatkin, aired over the PBS system. A second system was built for the Artist in Residency program at the Center and used in 1972 by artists such as Nam June Paik, Ernie Gehr, Shigeko Kubota, Hollis Frampton, Jackson MacLow and filmmaker Nick Ray, and also included in exhibitions at the Bonino Gallery in New York and the Everson Museum in Syracuse. A February 25th, 1978 letter by Nam June Paik clarifies the vital support the Experimental Television Center (then in Binghamton) and Ralph Hocking gave to Paik and Shigeko Kubota in creating their tools and art. He notes that the Paik-Abe Video Synthesizer which had officially premiered at WGBH was not up to WGBH\u2019s broadcast standard. The \u201Ctool was finally welded into [the] broadcast standard at Binghamton. [Paik writes that] \u201Cwithout Ralph Hocking, this machine would not have been completed.\u201D While working with ETC, Paik made two of his well known sculptures, Video Bed and TV Cello. In February 1972 in a collaborative exhibition with Nam June Paik and Charlotte Moorman at the Everson Museum, TV Bed and TV Cello were exhibited. Shigeko Kubota completed \u201CDuchamp-Chess\u201D at ETC in collaboration with Ken Dominick. The piece was shown at the Whitney\u2019s \u201CProjected Video\u201D; the Rene Block Gallery, New York City; the Kitchen at Mercer Art Center; and the Japan House Gallery in 1978. We assisted artists Joan Jonas, Tina Girourd and Carlota Schoolman with extended equipment loans. A raster scan manipulation device was also constructed, the principles of which were defined by Paik\u2019s early TV experiments such as \u201CDancing Patterns\u201D. The Center\u2019s name is changed to the Experimental Television Center. We participated in the 9th Annual Avant Garde Festival, produced by Charlotte Moorman. The Center produced Access, a weekly cable series of original programming produced by the community. Sherry Miller Hocking, Assistant. A Chronological History To visit the Experimental Television Center website A Chronological History Sherry Miller Hocking, on-going The Experimental Television Center began as an outgrowth of the Student Experiments in Television program formed in 1969 by Ralph Hocking on the campus of Binghamton University. SET provided access to the newly developed small-format portable video equipment for regional arts, educational and community groups and individuals as well as by students and faculty of the University. Incorporated in 1971, the Center created programs to facilitate the uses of the new technology by three major constituencies: artists; community organizations; and interested citizens. Access to equipment and editing facilities as well as an annual exhibition series and regularly scheduled instructional workshops were offered. For two years the Center sponsored a weekly community cable show, Access, which programmed tapes produced at the Center. Involvement with artists interested in investigating video as a contemporary art-making medium has always been an integral part of the Center\u0027s activities. A Research Program, initiated to provide a more flexible set of imaging tools to artists, facilitated the design and construction of new video tools. One of the early projects involved the construction of the Paik/Abe Video Synthesizer, under the direction of Nam June Paik and Shuya Abe, for the TV Lab at WNET-TV. After the installation in 1972 of a second system at the Center, the Center began a Residency Program, inviting artists such as Paik, Shigeko Kubota, poet Jackson MacLow and video activist Rudi Stern to use the facility. An annual exhibition series brought video artists like Beryl Korot, Gary Hill, Dickie Landry and many others to the Southern Tier. Today, the Center continues to offer a variety of unique programs which provide production, research and support services and a grants program for artists and cultural organizations. The programs are designed to encourage independent and creative uses of new media technologies across genres; to help design and implement cost-effective models for disseminating information about these technologies and their artistic applications; to nurture opportunities for the exhibition of independent film and media works in all regions of the State; and to preserve the primary artifacts of the history of video, particularly as it has unfolded in upstate New York over the last quarter century. 1968-70 Ralph Hocking began the Student Experiments in Television project on the campus of Binghamton University. Along with students, community members were introduced to portable video production tools and techniques. In 1969 Angel Nunez taped \u0022Bedford Stuyvesant Kids\u0022, a street-tape which documented neighborhood kids arrested by police after stealing from a factory, This tape was shown widely throughout the State and proved instrumental in obtaining funding for a number of drug-related and inner city improvement projects. It was eventually broadcast by WNET-TV. Equipment was used by many community-based organizations. Ralph Hocking, Director. 1970-71 With support from the New York State Council on the Arts, Hocking incorporated SET as the Community Center for TV Production, a non-profit media center and moved to a loft space in downtown Binghamton. The initial programs emphasized production training for community organizations, educational institutions and individuals. In meetings with Nam June Paik, Hocking addressed artists\u0027 uses of video and began a program to support the development of imaging tools. The programs included access to portable tools, instruction programs, exhibition of works, and a residency program for artists. We participated in the 8th Annual Avant Garde Festival. Equipment was used by the Veterans, NAACP, Awana, First Presbyterian Church, Owego Girls Club and many other civic, governmental and religious organizations. Woody and Steina Vasulka presented video works and installations. Ken Dominick, Coordinator. 1971-72 Funding was received from the New York State Council on the Arts for construction of the Paik/Abe Video Synthesizer. One system was designed and built in 1972 at the Center by Shuya Abe and Nam June Paik for eventual placement at the TV Lab at WNET-TV. This system was used while still at the Center by the TV Lab, including David Loxton, John Godfrey and Russell Connor, to produce a portion of Paik\u0027s \u0022The Selling of New York\u0022, included in the PBS series Carousel, broadcast in 1972 by WNET. \u0022Selling of New York\u0022 bacame a part of WGBH and WNET\u0027s production \u0022Tribute to John Cage\u0022 as well as the opening segment for \u0022My Shuttle - New York - Moscow,\u0022 a collaboration with Dmitri Devyatkin, aired over the PBS system. A second system was built for the Artist in Residency program at the Center and used in 1972 by artists such as Nam June Paik, Ernie Gehr, Shigeko Kubota, Hollis Frampton, Jackson MacLow and filmmaker Nick Ray, and also included in exhibitions at the Bonino Gallery in New York and the Everson Museum in Syracuse. A February 25th, 1978 letter by Nam June Paik clarifies the vital support the Experimental Television Center (then in Binghamton) and Ralph Hocking gave to Paik and Shigeko Kubota in creating their tools and art. He notes that the Paik-Abe Video Synthesizer which had officially premiered at WGBH was not up to WGBH\u0027s broadcast standard. The \u0022tool was finally welded into [the] broadcast standard at Binghamton. [Paik writes that] \u0022without Ralph Hocking, this machine would not have been completed.\u0022 While working with ETC, Paik made two of his well known sculptures, Video Bed and TV Cello. In February 1972 in a collaborative exhibition with Nam June Paik and Charlotte Moorman at the Everson Museum, TV Bed and TV Cello were exhibited. Shigeko Kubota completed \u0022Duchamp-Chess\u0022 at ETC in collaboration with Ken Dominick. The piece was shown at the Whitney\u0027s \u0022Projected Video\u0022; the Rene Block Gallery, New York City; the Kitchen at Mercer Art Center; and the Japan House Gallery in 1978. We assisted artists Joan Jonas, Tina Girourd and Carlota Schoolman with extended equipment loans. A raster scan manipulation devise was also constructed, the principles of which were defined by Paik\u0027s early TV experiments such as \u0022Dancing Patterns\u0022. The Center\u0027s name is changed to the Experimental Television Center. We participated in the 9th Annual Avant Garde Festival, produced by Charlotte Moorman. The Center produced Access, a weekly cable series of original programming produced by the community. Sherry Miller Hocking, Assistant. 1972-73 The Residency Program continued, including artists such as John Randolph Carter, Tom DeWitt and Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane, John Reilly, Joe and Patsy Scala, Rudi Stern, Ed Melnick, and Peer Bode. Walter Wright was an Artist in Residence, actively conducting workshops in electronic imaging throughout the State and Canada. Workshops were conducted for the New York State Art Teachers Annual Conference, and at the Everson Museum and The Kitchen. Works from the Experimental Television Center, a large exhibition produced for the Video Program, at the Everson Museum curated by David Ross, included installations, tapes and performances. Many individuals and groups from the community produced tapes, and participated in workshops. These tapes as well as artists\u0027 tapes were cablecast weekly in the series \u0022Access\u0022, produced by the Center. Bob Diamond, Technician. David Jones, Technician. Walter Wright, Artist in Residence. Oscillators were designed by David Jones for use as signal inputs to the synthesizer. Initial research began into the Jones gray level keyer and production of a black and white keyer. Modification of an existing Sony SEG for direct sync interface with the Paik/Abe with provision for external wipe signal input 1973-74 David Jones became technician at the Center. Artists participating in the Residency program included Jean Pierre Boyer, Howard Gutstadt and Survival Arts Media, Tom DeWitt, Toby Carey, Lois Welk, Mimi Martin, Meryl Blackman, Francis Lee, Evangelos Dousmanis, Taka Iimura, Carlota Schoolman, Doris Chase, and Michael LV Butler. We conducted a regularly scheduled series of workshops on the basic principles of video production. Workshops in imaging and synthesis were also held regularly at the Center; Walter Wright presented the system at many locations, including the Kitchen, Global Village and at York University in Toronto. We provided equipment support for Astral Projections: A Polyfusion of Media, at the Rochester Planetarium. We consulted with the Lake Placid Video Theater, the Collective for Living Cinema, and attended the Video in New York State conference at the Whitney Museum and the Video and the Museum conference at the Everson Museum. Oscillators were designed for use as signal inputs to the Paik/Abe Synthesizer. We hosted the Gay Video Workshop, a three day workshop for gay media artists, and presented a concert by Richard Landry We begin initial research into the Jones gray level keyer and production of a black and white keyer, as well as modification of an existing SEG for direct sync interface with the Paik/Abe, with provision for external wipe signal input. The equipment we design and create is either not available commercially or is so expensive it is beyond the reach of independent artists. 1974-75 Artists included Gary Hill, Arnie Z","offset":0,"nextOffset":12000,"totalCharacters":143977,"complete":false},"rightsUrl":"https://www.videohistoryproject.org/terms-service"}