Sound art marks peace day

German filmmaker Philip Gröning's audio installation Sounds of Loss will fill St Peter's Basilica on September 21, the UN International Day of Peace, with 1,096 individually recorded clicking and tapping sounds.

Each sound represents a life

The installation broadcasts 1,096 sounds over 49 hours, with each sound representing one person killed in war. Based on 2026 statistics, a death occurs on average every 2.62 minutes.

Vatican calls it a summons

Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça praised Gröning as a master of silence, saying the project serves as a summons to responsibility and urges people to hear the cry of war victims.

“A summons to responsibility”

Awakening from torpor

Paolo Ruffini, Prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, said the project awakens people from indifference to war. Each sound represents an untold story, a silenced face, a name, a voice cut short.

“Each beat, an untold story, a face, a name, a voice silenced”

Sound persists more than images

Gröning began the project in winter 2026 after reflecting on daily war deaths. He chose sound over images because repetition and sound are more persistent than fleeting visual media.

“Images are fleeting. Repetition and sound may be more persistent.”

Sounds from everyday objects

Over three months, the project recorded more than 24,000 samples from 50 categories including light switches, telegram machines, clocks, door locks, cardboard boxes and pencils on tables.

Irregular sounds reflect inequality

The clicks are intentionally irregular, sometimes clustered and sometimes silent, with varying volumes. This reflects how war victims receive unequal attention based on cultural, religious or racial factors.

Global reach across time zones

The 49-hour installation spans all time zones, beginning in Kiribati and ending on Baker Island. Other cathedrals in New York and Verona are also participating, with live streaming available online.