Light artist Gerry Hofstetter honored by the "Swiss Society of New York
The «Swiss Society of New York» celebrated its annual «Swiss Ball» on Saturday. Light artist Gerry Hofstetter accepted the Crystal Apple for outstanding service to Switzerland in the United States.
In Switzerland, Hofstetter is known primarily as an artist who works with large-scale light projections. In the USA, on the other hand, he is the man who brought Tell to New York: since August 1 last year, a statue of the Swiss national hero has stood on Rat Island, a small island off the coast of New York. The island belongs to two Swiss, and the four-meter-high Tell was Hofstetter's idea. With the statue, he wanted to refer to the fundamental values of democracy and freedom on which both Switzerland and the USA are built.
New president
Hofstetter was now honored for the action and his installations around the world in front of more than 300 guests at the distinguished Cipriani Hall in New York. "Gerry connects people with something that transcends religions, languages, races and borders: light," said the new president of the Swiss Society, Tanja Dreiding Wallace, in her address.
The Swiss Society of New York has been in existence for 135 years and, with the help of numerous sponsors, hosted the ball this year for the 97th time. For decades, the annual gala has been regarded as the social highlight of the Swiss abroad in New York. Dreiding Wallace wants to increasingly appeal to a younger audience that represents the diversity of Switzerland. She called on the guests at the Swiss Ball to work as a team. Cooperation, she said, is at the heart of a democracy.
"Swiss Touch"
Deputy Consul General in New York, Giorgio Pompillio presented the "Swiss Touch" campaign, which will promote Switzerland in the US this year: A table on which films and information about Switzerland can be accessed with a touch will be sent on a tour of the United States. "We invite people to sit down with us at the round table," Pompilio said. (SDA)
