W A R - Wealth And Religion
Note: I’ll be uploading this series in its entirety to my Facebook and Instagram pages throughout January: www.davidgilliver.com
# 2
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As I celebrate 25 years of photographing miniatures, toys & figurines, I have turned my attention back to one of the subject matters I spent most of my time studying and photographing during my Degree at the Glasgow School of Art: Toy soldiers.
.
For as long as I can remember toy soldiers have fascinated me, and when I discovered the incredible photographs captured by the artist David Levinthal I was blown away. This, in part, led to me documenting many of my childhood toys during my degree in the late 90’s.
.
Playing with toy soldiers was one of my favourite pastimes as a youngster. Children learn so much about life through the act of play, albeit whilst possessing a limited ability to comprehend the real life consequences mirrored within the story lines that are played out.
.
The theme of war is ever present in all of our lives. Whether we choose to acknowledge it or not (if we have that luxury) is another matter. It is a constant – an inevitability, like death and taxes.
.
In late 2023 I spent a grand total of ~£30 sourcing hundreds of the cheapest and most generic toy soldiers I could find. I literally bought armies of them.
.
During my degree, I became fascinated by the notion of what happens to a toy when it is entirely removed from its intended use and original context. Just like I did in the late 90’s, I have photographed the figurines individually with nothing but a blank backdrop for company, laying bear the imperfections of each character.
.
I could count on one hand the number of times I have used a ‘filter’ in any of my photography, but for this series it felt somehow necessary. Perhaps because it adds to the sense of drama, perhaps because it helps to mask the fact they are merely toys, I am not entirely sure. But something interesting happened to each image when it was added.
.
I have spent a lot of time carefully editing/refining the figurines that are depicted: perfecting their imperfections. I will upload one image per day from this new series throughout January.
.
#war #stopwar #humannature #destruction #selfdestruct #inevitable #humans #toys #tolsoldiers #macro #macrophotography #filter #closeup #death
W A R - Wealth And Religion
Note: I’ll be uploading this series in its entirety to my Facebook and Instagram pages throughout January: www.davidgilliver.com
# 2
.
As I celebrate 25 years of photographing miniatures, toys & figurines, I have turned my attention back to one of the subject matters I spent most of my time studying and photographing during my Degree at the Glasgow School of Art: Toy soldiers.
.
For as long as I can remember toy soldiers have fascinated me, and when I discovered the incredible photographs captured by the artist David Levinthal I was blown away. This, in part, led to me documenting many of my childhood toys during my degree in the late 90’s.
.
Playing with toy soldiers was one of my favourite pastimes as a youngster. Children learn so much about life through the act of play, albeit whilst possessing a limited ability to comprehend the real life consequences mirrored within the story lines that are played out.
.
The theme of war is ever present in all of our lives. Whether we choose to acknowledge it or not (if we have that luxury) is another matter. It is a constant – an inevitability, like death and taxes.
.
In late 2023 I spent a grand total of ~£30 sourcing hundreds of the cheapest and most generic toy soldiers I could find. I literally bought armies of them.
.
During my degree, I became fascinated by the notion of what happens to a toy when it is entirely removed from its intended use and original context. Just like I did in the late 90’s, I have photographed the figurines individually with nothing but a blank backdrop for company, laying bear the imperfections of each character.
.
I could count on one hand the number of times I have used a ‘filter’ in any of my photography, but for this series it felt somehow necessary. Perhaps because it adds to the sense of drama, perhaps because it helps to mask the fact they are merely toys, I am not entirely sure. But something interesting happened to each image when it was added.
.
I have spent a lot of time carefully editing/refining the figurines that are depicted: perfecting their imperfections. I will upload one image per day from this new series throughout January.
.
#war #stopwar #humannature #destruction #selfdestruct #inevitable #humans #toys #tolsoldiers #macro #macrophotography #filter #closeup #death