This expressive illustration shows a young soldier smoking a cigar while clutching a rifle tightly. The scene is characterised by an intense contrast between childhood and war, between innocence and the brutal reality of survival. The boy's gaze is serious, almost empty, and reflects the psychological heaviness that accompanies armed conflict and the loss of youth. The cigar symbolises a prematurely forced maturity, while the gun embodies the omnipresent threat and compulsion to violence. This haunting depiction addresses the harrowing reality of child soldiers, which is a sad reality in many parts of the world. The illustration is suitable as a strong visual statement for socio-critical projects, exhibitions or campaigns that want to draw attention to human rights, peace work and child protection.
Conceived by Frank Heinz, visualized with AI.
Frank Heinz is an experienced photographer whose passion for photography began in the analogue era of black and white images many decades ago. With the transition to digital photography, he discovered the fascinating world of colour and experimented with new computer-based editing techniques to explore the limits of image.. Read more…