The Voyager Golden Record
“We cast this message into the cosmos…a present from a small distant world.
We are attempting to survive our time so we may live into yours.” – President Jimmy Carter, on the Voyager Golden Record In celebration of the 40th anniversary of The Golden Record project, WeTransfer has partnered with Stink Studios, Gilles Peterson, Oneohtrix Point Never, S U R V I V E, Wanda Diaz Merced and more to present “A Message from Earth.”
This interactive exhibition of specially-commissioned music, film, art and literature pays tribute to the ambitious, optimistic spirit of the original Golden Record. 40 years ago, a group led by astronomer Carl Sagan set themselves a seemingly impossible challenge – to sum up what it means to be human, and capture these images, sounds, music and greetings on two Golden Records. These were placed aboard NASA’s Voyager I and II, two spacecraft blasted into space to go further than anything man-made had ever gone before. The records were intended as a message from Earth for any extraterrestrial life that might find them.
The unique online exhibition “A Message from Earth” represents a collage of the contemporary human condition, and features new and exclusive pieces from leading artists, musicians, photographers, authors, and scientists. Their works are commissioned to celebrate themes of hope, determination, and goodwill, are inspired by the original project. The exhibition’s intention is to relay a message of goodwill and encourage further exploration while raising awareness and funding for Astronomers without Borders, the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University, and the SETI Institute. WeTransfer is providing $10,000 grants to each institution to initiate public donations, and the project will be commemorated in a $15 limited edition zine with 100% of generated revenues going to the non-profits above.
“WeTransfer came from the creative community, and as a company we embrace projects like the Voyager Golden Record to inspire us. We’ve collaborated with 40 individuals and organizations from over 20 countries to put this together, and we’re humbled by the people we’ve been able to work with,” says Stephen Canfield, WeTransfer’s VP of Marketing.
“We’ve had a strong commitment to arts and sciences since 2009, and this felt like a natural next step for us – closely collaborating with amazing people to tell a story that’s inspired so many. The Voyager Golden Record shows what we can do when we come together to create and share something bigger than us, and that feels like a welcome message in 2017. We hope others feel the same, and that we can use this to raise funding for more exploration and selfless acts of cultural diplomacy in the years to come.”
Chapters of A Message from Earth: A Collage of the Contemporary Human Condition, include:
This exhibition hopes to raise awareness and funding to aid in the creation of more projects like the Golden Record in the future. Site visitors can go to https://amessagefrom.earth to donate.
About the Voyager Golden Record
When Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 launched in 1977 to explore the far reaches of our solar system, each spacecraft held a gold-plated copper phonograph record containing music, language, sounds of Earth, and 120 encoded images. The content was curated by a team led by noted astronomer and educator Carl Sagan, aiming to provide a vision of Earth for any extraterrestrial intelligence the probes might encounter: our sounds, science, images, grandest thoughts, greatest achievements, and deepest feelings.
The contents include greetings in 55 languages, music from the likes of Chuck Berry, Bach, and indigenous peoples around the world, scenes of civilization and wilderness, laughter, birdsong, and the brainwaves of a young woman in love. Forty years on, the twin Voyagers are farther away from Earth than any human-made object has ever been, and built to the twin Voyagers and their Golden Records will essentially drift forever among the stars.
The Golden Record was released on vinyl for the first time in 2017, as part of a kickstarter campaign led by Ozma Records. The most successful music Kickstarter in history sold out quickly, but lavish CD and LP boxsets were recently made available for purchase again. 2xCD and book will be in stores December 8, 2017 and 3xLP boxset will be in stores February 16, 2018. Both can be preordered at: http://www.ozmarecords.com About WeTransfer
WeTransfer is the simplest way to send your files around the world. Every month, 40 million active users transfer over one billion files. The service is all about making the creative process effortless, for everyone.
We believe creativity makes the world a better place, and being creative is a big part of what it means to be human. Since 2009 we have been showcasing amazing creative work on WeTransfer with gratis advertising for musicians, photographers, and artists, giving away over five billion pages a year. We also offer financial grants, tech/design support and promotion to help creatives tell the stories that matter to them and bring relevant cultural projects to life.
Above all, we hope these stories encourage other people to make something new themselves. Because inspiration means more when you do something with it. For more information on WeTransfer’s A Message from Earth, please contact Kate Jackson and Chloe Walsh.
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