On average, 2,174 people die every day as a direct result of war. Nine out of ten of these are civilians. Half of these are children. 

 “Unknown Civilians Killed in War” commemorates those whose lives were lost, unrecorded, the collateral damage of military action.

Civilians die in action as surely and as finally as any soldier. They also die from the consequences of war: shattered infrastructures, poisoned water and land, abandoned ordinance. Civilians deserve to be remembered. By honoring slain civilians alongside our war dead, we understand and acknowledge the full gravity of war and the full extent of its cost.

651 Poppies

Mixed Media 303 bullet shells, material, paper.

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One child is killed every five weeks in NZ receiving the medias, and therefore the public’s attention, while many others live on in a world of uncertainty and danger.

Taking the traditionally boxing bag which is usually hard to hit and transferring it by filling it with a soft substance, with a child’s face on, the bag becomes the child and making the gloves, that were designed to protect the hands out of Plaster of Paris now are the force behind SMACK the loving caregivers, mother and father.

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‘New Zealand’s Role of Shame’

No.8 Wire Awards

1320 Terracotta Kiwis representing the New Zealand children who died at the hands of their parents or caregivers between 1900 and 2011.

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Operation Iraqi Freedom: The Human Cost of Occupation

To date 4,114 American soldiers have lost their lives in a fight to free a country, 80,000 civilians have lost their lives.

‘Honor’ is a word and a concept very much abused these days. During the past week over 160 civilians were killed in Iraq, 15 of them by US forces. Among those killed were 21 children –killed by roadside bombs, mortars, gunfire… by men who would and do call themselves ‘men of honor.’ Iraqis, Americans, British, Middle Eastern… people of various nationalities and faiths, people who think themselves honorable and commit atrocities at the altar of honor.

The truth is there is nothing honorable about having the blood of innocents on your hands. Whoever you are. Whether you are a religious fanatic, a proud nationalist, a dutiful soldier, a devout Christian/Muslim or a suicide bomber. There is neither bravery nor honor in the killing of the weak, of the poor and the defenseless. It is only easy. (Lily Hamourtziadou)

Billboard 4,114 plastic army men 80.00 terracotta figures

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