America: The Gift Shop

I first became aware of Phillip Toledano’s work through Rachel Hulin on the now-defunct Shoot! The Blog. (If you haven’t seen Toledano’s project Days with My Father, be sure to check that out.) I absolutely love his new site, America: The Gift Shop. He says this, in part, about it: “Once the sugar coating of the ordinary dissolves, we are left with the hard and uncomfortable truth about where we’ve been as a nation. We buy souvenirs at the end of a trip, to remind ourselves of the experience. What do we have to remind us of the events of the last eight years?” This project is Toledano’s answer.

Abu Ghraib coffee table. Copyright © Phillip Toledano

Pre-emptive strikes. Copyright © Phillip Toledano

Abu Ghraib Bobble-head. Copyright © Phillip Toledano

Cheney shredding secret documents. Copyright © Phillip Toledano

Choc and Awe chocolate bar. Copyright © Phillip Toledano

Abdul the Amputee (Collect all 23,000). Copyright © Phillip Toledano

via Rachel Hulin