All the Minutes of Silence

Continuous listening to minutes of silence in order to grasp the scale of the issue

A listening device that gathers every minute of silence dedicated to each person who has died by suicide, from the beginning of the available records to the present

“Suicide statistics give no idea of the individual soul.”

Karl Jaspers

Minutes of silence are acts of respect and remembrance that have become a tradition in many cultures and countries.

The practice of observing a minute of silence spread across the world as a gesture honouring those who died in armed conflicts, natural disasters, national tragedies and significant historical events. This symbolic act has crossed cultural and linguistic boundaries and become a widely shared expression of respect and reflection.

Each minute of silence becomes a powerful expression through which collective memory pays tribute to those who have died. Through this simple act of listening, we remember them, keep their memory alive and console ourselves in their absence.

Minutes of silence transcend time and distance, becoming a timeless way of commemorating and valuing the lives of those who are no longer here.

Continuous listening to All the Minutes of Silence from 1980 to 2025 would require 103 days, 4 hours and 30 minutes: 148,590 minutes.

“Silence begins with a spacing of times.”

Marguerite Duras, The Lover