The story behind “The Spiral of Death”

Photography is my way to tell a story in a visual format.  I always try and make people think, aiming to have a positive impact on their lives with my images and the story it represents.  “The Spiral of Death” is no different, but it is a very controversial image.  Some will love it and some will absolutely hate it!

So many people smoke these days.  More and more young children are pursuing this unhealthy habit.  My personal opinion is that smoking first starts off as a joke, of maybe as a way of “making a statement”, but it will eventually turn out to be a spiral of death.  It is difficult to quit, due to the emotional and physical dependence.  My aim with this photo was to have a harsh visual representation of the reality, asking people to never start or to stop while they still can!

I needed a skeleton and my Orthopaedic friend came to my rescue.  When I pushed “Bennie”, (that is what I named the skeleton) through the hospital, an old man came from the front with a huge question mark on his face.  I thought:  “Let’s have some FUN!”  I put my arm around Bennie’s bony shoulder, leaned a little towards him and said out loud:  “Come Bennie, let’s go home!!”  The expression of the man’s face was priceless, he must have thought that I am totally nuts.

Technically the image was made up out of 9 images.  I bought a packet of cigarettes for the first time in my life, seeing that I am an asthmatic and I have never smoked before.  Every element of the composite was planned carefully, from the skeleton and all the different parts of the bony body, down to the ashes.  Putting it together was lots of hard work, but very rewarding.  Seeing the final product on my screen was a fulfilling moment!

I will leave you with the following:  Life is tuff, nobody is getting out of it alive, but you have a choice how you live your life until it is your day to leave this earth.  Are you going to live life to the fullest until your INTENDED last day, of are you going to shorten your journey on earth by being caught up in the Spiral of Death?                                                                                   

• Alta Oosthuizen