Sophie Guyot: The Meaning of Meaning
sound-light installation
French Revolution Square  

The Swiss artist’s new project explores the issue of the universal language or method of communication that would enable contact with extraterrestrial beings with the help of images and sound. In the background of her project is an evergreen question: Are we alone in the space? Previous attempts at interplanetary communication have not borne fruit; Sophie Guyot aims to re-evaluate such practices and offer a different, if not more appropriate, language of communication – with the help of newly conceived symbols and sounds, she created a semantic structure that may more successfully address an unknown intelligence. Guyot developed a series of luminous pictograms and placed them on disused traffic lights, pointing into the depths of space. With home-made audio devices powered by electric motors, the images are accompanied by sound. The project The Meaning of Meaning reveals light playfulness, but a deadly serious intent of the artist’s activity: although it looks around into the space of the beyond, it primarily addresses earthly fears and hopes.

SOPHIE GUYOT obtained a master’s degree in art history, after which she specialized in the design of lighting objects and installations. She mostly works with light and is especially interested in its spatial manifestations. In recent years, she has focused on monumental installations in urban space, researching human attitude towards the biotope. She has authored an internationally successful series of lamps, Lamp-roller, which has been produced in Switzerland since 1999. She exhibits lighting object both outdoors and in gallery spaces, and her works have been featured at many festivals and events. From time to time, she also conducts ecologically-coloured workshops for the design of lighting bodies and installations.