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28 November 2012

**This post is not such an encouragement nor a promoted one. All readers are responsible for their actions related to this post**

I don't know if I'm supposed to be happy or sad. Indonesian toddler's chain smoking YouTube video has inspired Frieke Janssens for the recent project Smoking Kids.


 

















The video is available below.




Well, I can say, Frieke Jansenns are so creative! With well-dressed kids, and various ways of smoking and some sort of cigarette and cigar, the Belgian photographer is trying to personify the art and aesthetics of smoke and the particular way smokers gesticulate with their hands and posture. In the shooting of this series,  there were no real cigarettes on set. Instead, chalk and sticks of cheese were the prop stand ins, while candles and incense provided the wisps of smoke.

For those social smokers (me not), they find it fascinating and feeling cool (yikes) when they smoke. Look at your smoking surrounding. If there's somebody smoking without really sucking the smoke inside their lungs, just inside the mouth (yikesss, again) then blow out of it in after 2 seconds, then he/she might be just smoking for coolness.

But again, this is not supposed to happen. Cigarette is only for adults, and ONLY who NEED it. For me, my day will be full of constant headache if I don't smoke one, just one, of a cigarette in the morning. I smoke single bar after big eat, long flight or train trip, before I give speech in front of president or something like that, and when I'm blogging and waiting. That's why I hate waiting because I tend to smoke. But here in Germany, smoking is getting costly, so I (try to) reduce my smoking habit.

I know, that after traveling half over the planet, I found my homeland country is the heaven of smokers. The reasons?

  • Kids can buy cigarette. Often fathers ask their kids to buy cigs at tabacceria. No ID required.
  • A lot of stores and mini mart open 24/7, where you can buy almost all of branded cigs
  • People can smoke EVERYWHERE. I even remembered my elementary school teacher smoking in the classroom, WHILE TEACHING. Oh Praise Lord
  • Cigs are F**UCKING cheap. 1 pack of Marlboro can people buy for a DOLLAR (Note: 1 USD is less than 1 EUR) Praise Lord twice.
  • If there's a banner that you're not allowed to smoke (eg. stations, terminals) police doesn't give a damn of it
  • We in Indonesia have the best, I repeat, THE BEST cigarette in the world, from Dji Sam Soe Kretek (watch out! No filter involved here), Djarum Super, and of course, Ting We (self-rolled cigs. I tried it in Bali, and it was AWESOME. The video is here)

Even though cigarette is physically forbidden in commercials, still, many people are smoking. Even though you'll never see the cigarette, these cigarette companies are so clever promoting their products by amazing advertising; adventure, wild life, muscled body, witty protest, event sponsorships, scholarship programs, etc. No wonder the top 5 richest people in the country are always including cigarette company tycoon.

To see the YouTube video which becomes the inspiration of this project, tab here. To see the series, you don't need to tab anywhere. I provide you the whole series.





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