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Antipersonnel Antipersonnel

Landmines staged and photographed as jewellery

Antipersonnel
Brief

‘Antipersonnel’ uses a documentary approach to identify and archive the various types of anti-personnel and submunitions that still exist around the world today. Raphaël Dallaporta’s life size photos of landmines on a black background, which look like something out of a perfume catalogue, awaken feelings of both fascination and disgust. They remind us that war is a business just like any other, and that the business of anti-personnel landmines is the vilest and basest of all.

Approach

“It aims to draw attention to a business in which the mines are designed, manufactured, and sold”, says Dallaporta, who has been fascinated by the subject since he came across people working with landmines while in Bosnia in 1998.

In the publication, the mines are seen as objects of beauty; diabolical beauty: they are photogenic, attractive and sensual, photographed as if they were designer products, dressed in their best dresses of steel or bronze satin. The viewer becomes captivated by the disturbing beauty of these objects. In contrast we see the detailed explanation of each: name, origin, year manufactured, weight, size, human impact, and fascination gives way to disgust and our conscience wavers faced with this vile, depraved reality.

“One of the great strengths of photography resides in its ability to inventory and capture the world around us. Raphaël Dallaporta presents a captivating example of this with his project on antipersonnel mines.”
- Martin Parr

Client:
Raphaël Dallaporta
Year:
2010
Texts and translation:
Tom Ridgway
Publisher:
Éditions Xavier Barral