Helloworld receives 3892000 messages from all over the world
Call for peace emerges as the most dominant theme
The Helloworld Project came to a close in the early hours of Saturday, as the last messages flashed across the mountain Morro dois Irmaos in Rio de Janeiro, and the UN Headquarters building in New York. The artist and creator of the Helloworld Project, Johannes Gees, in New York to witness the final spectacle, thanked the United Nations for hosting the project, and commended it for its openness and courage in a year when it has come under much pressure.
Countless people from all over the world seized the opportunity to participate in the Helloworld Project from Tuesday, December 9 - 12, by sending SMS-texts or entering their messages via the website www.helloworldproject.com. On average, around 292500 messages were projected in each city over the course of the four days. Messages sent via the internet by far outweighed those sent by SMS: 5% of all messages were entered by SMS.
Peace and Love for all
The call for peace was an over-riding theme which ran like a threadthrough the entire four days, along with reflective and philosophical messages. Overtly political statements were particularly prominent in Rio de Janeiro, with Brazilians giving voice to their concerns about poverty, exploitation, corruption and violence in their country and the world at large. Personal messages were freely entered: declarations of love, marriage proposals, Christmas and New Year wishes to friends and family, countries and continents, while in Rio de Janeiro, Jesus always came out tops.
The editorial board based at Swissinfo in Bern was overwhelmed by the influx of messages right from the very beginning. Made up of 10 people speaking the languages Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Hindi, Portuguese and Spanish, the board screened all messages for racist,sexist content, personal or religious insults or commercial messages. Concluding their work in the early hours of Saturday morning, they expressed their surprise at how few messages had been sent in which did not comply with the editorial guidelines. However, due to the huge influx of messages, they were forced to make a selection. The messages are all archived indefinitely on the website www.helloworldproject.com.
A selection of messages
Let Love Rule
God is a Mother
We Are Family
Feel the warmth of this message
We are all the same, even your enemy. If you want to understand start to listen! Carla, Zurich
Never be so well-rounded that you become pointless.
No message ;-))
You can turn the lights off, I have found the dog.
Good News: We are all different!
Religion is about love. Man has made it about war.
An angel is an idea with wings and arms to hold you...
If you see this message, I love you
Imagine Peace
Cleanse the doors of perception and everything will appear as it is - Infinite.
Peace can only last where human rights are respected, where the people are fed, and where individuals and nations are free.
An eye for an eye makes the world blind
Fanatic roots grow best on a field of poverty and hopelessnes
IRONY IS OVER
Partners
The project is organised by the Federal Office for Culture, and supported by SRG SSR idée suisse, Migros Kulturprozent, Minick AG and Switch the Swiss Education and Research Network.
About the artist
Johannes Gees is an artist and media producer based in Zurich, Switzerland. The Helloworld Project is the second in a series of interactive installations in public space (see www.hellomrpresident.com).
