Excuse me, Sir

“The scene that appears in the photo was a novelty for me. Something like this had never been shown before at ILA. It’s true that for the past two years there had been the odd animation or real picture showing the impact and effect of weapons, but this year it had become absolutely normal. I already noticed animated acts of war in passing on the day that the weapons trade fair was being set up. I found it somewhat disturbing. War and destruction were suddenly so blatant, pervasive, so close. Advertising with fire and explosions, with the flight of a missile and its powerful impact, was done very aggressively. I was still puzzled, when someone spoke to me in a friendly manner from a stand: ‘Can I help you?’ I answered: ‘Thank you, I am waiting for the next impact.’ However, this ‘impact’, the missile’s flight and impact, was not shown again on the day things were being set up; but I knew that on the days when interested trade visitors would be looking around, I would get to see it again – in front of the public. So I spent a number of hours to be able to get this picture. It was trade fair business, with high-level military people and specialists walking through the image or standing delighted in front of the war animation. I waited patiently and observed for a long time before capturing this moment. I guessed the picture would make a powerful statement.”

Learn more about the pictures of Thorsten Klapsch in the newest issue of LFI Magazine.