Dark is the night (Voyager)

HD video installation. 1 hour 53 minutes. 2012/2013.

Click image to watch video.


In 1977, two space probes, Voyager I and Voyager II, were launched with the primary mission of collecting data from the outer planets.

Attached to each probe is a gold plated copper disc encoded with images and sounds from Earth. The selection of the material was chosen by a committee headed by Carl Sagan. The audio component contains 31 tracks including greetings in a variety of languages and a selection of music.

In 2013 NASA confirmed that Voyager 1 left the solar system. The closest star on Voyager I’s trajectory will not be reached for 40,000 years; Voyager’s energy sources are expected to be exhausted by 2025.

Dark is the night (Voyager), is a video recording of an FM radio broadcast of the Voyager Golden Record being played back in its entirety over a broken, wind-up emergency radio. The battery no longer holds a charge, requiring a constant exertion of activity in order to recieve the signal and materialize it through sound and light.

In the video, transmission and human activity are directly linked. Faint glimpses of a figure emerge from behind the light. Periodically the figure miscranks due to error or fatigue, briefly plunging the screen and space into silence and darkness.

Exhibition history:
2014 G Gallery, Toronto ON.
2013 Cinesonika 3, Foyle Arts Centre, Londonderry GBR.
2013 Paved Arts, Saskatoon SK.
2012 UICA, Grand Rapids USA.