The meaning of empathy

Have just stumbled across this story by BBC news and had to share. Not only is it a well written piece with a well deserving topic but the subject in the spot light is truly admirble.

Giles Duley, a second shot at life.

Duley turns the camera on himself during recovery. This shot called 'The Greek Statue'.
"People who look at Greek statues never say it's a shame because they're not complete".

Some of Duley's moving work

Duley believes that, in time, his limb loss will enrich rather than diminish his work. "It's about empathy," he insists.

"It means I'm going to have to focus even more on the connection with people. It's an unspoken art and an unspoken skill, but I'm convinced I'll be better than ever at that."


Amazing story and personally I can't wait to see more of his work abroad as he follows "the consequence of war after the trumpets are gone" what a brilliant eye opening project it will be.

While I was tripping around Cambodia I was learning about their painful history with the Pol Pot Genocide and the most amazing this about this country for me was the raw and obvious realization that they have never recovered. Its poverty was in your face and its past wasn't so long ago. For a kid of my generation and even more so one that was raised in cotton-wool New Zealand the effects of war have always seemed like a past thought. Some thing that we learnt about but would never have to experience.

It was incredibly eye opening to be somewhere where this devastation was still alive and reading about Duley's work makes me wish I had captured more of it while I was there.


Im sure Duley's injuries have been a massive hitch (understatement) in his professional endeavors as a photographer. Never thinking he would become his own subject in a project that might have seemed so far from personal.  But full credit to him for taking it to the next level and going back to do continue it and in a way he see's as even better then before! What a completely inspirational and determined man.