
Children From Around The World Showcase Their Favorite Toys In This Heartwarming Series (22 Pics)
They say a picture is worth a thousand words but what about tens of pictures? From over 50 countries? Well, that's a book, and it's called Toy Stories: Photos of Children from Around the World and Their Favorite Things.
For about two years, Italian photographer Gabriele Galimberti had been visiting boys and girls around the globe to capture their portraits with their most prized possession — toys. From Texas to India, Malawi to China, Iceland, Morocco, and Fiji, Galimberti recorded the spontaneous and natural joy that unites kids despite their diverse backgrounds. Whether the child owns a veritable fleet of miniature cars or just a single stuffed monkey, the pride that they have is moving, funny, and thought-provoking.
More info: gabrielegalimberti.com | Instagram | Facebook
This post may include affiliate links.
Chiwa, 4, Mchinji, Malawi
"I started this project almost by chance!" Galimberti told Bored Panda. "The first photo that I took for this series was in Tuscany, it's the one with the girl and the cows in the background. She's the daughter of one of my best friends. He asked me to photograph her, so I went to their house and she was playing with the cows. I thought that situation was really nice and so I decided to take a photo of that moment. I asked her to pose together with her toys and with the cows in the background. Then I really loved the result and some months later, when I had the possibility to start my trip around the world, I decided to take the same kind of photo in every country that I was going to visit."
Rivaldo Fesna, 5 , Port-Au-Prince , Haiti
Galimberti traveled the world in 2012-2013. At that time, he was working for one of the biggest Italian magazines, D La Repubblica. He was doing a story for the magazine about CouchSurfing and visited 58 countries using the Internet platform. Every week, he had a page on the magazine to report his trip and was publishing a portrait of the couchsurfer that was hosting him at the time.
"All the children that I have photographed are somehow connected to the couchsurfers that have hosted me. They are their children, their nephews, or simply their neighbors."
Tangawizi, 3, Keekorok, Kenya
The kids look comfortable and relaxed in the photos and that's probably because Galimberti took the time to earn their trust first. Mostly by playing with them. "I was really surprised to see how easy it was for children to understand my project!" He would spend anywhere from a couple of hours to a whole day getting to know the children before taking out his camera.
You can see a lot of differences in the photos but the thing that all of them have in common, according to Galimberti, is that they just love to play.
Maudy, 3, Kalulushi, Zambia
Kafele, 5 , Mkanda, Malawi
Bothe, 4, Maun, Botswana
Arafa And Aisha, 4, Bububu, Zanzibar
Porjai, 3 , Bangkok, Thailand
Virginia, 5, American Fork, Utah
Alessia, 5, Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy
Bethsaida, 6, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti
Zi Yi, 3, Chongquing, China
Taha, 4, Beirut, Lebanon
Ernesto, 3, Firenze, Italy
Naya, 3, Managua, Nicaragua
Lauren, 6, Muskoka, Canada
Callum, 4, Fairbanks, Alaska
Talia, 5, Timimoun, Algeria
Allenah, 4, El Nido, Philippines
Puput, 4, Ubud, Bali
Julia, 3, Tirana, Albania
Norden, 5, Sidi Benzarne, Morocco
Absolutely LOVE that he thinks of his bookbag and notebooks as "toys" ... they give him joy!
Why is this considered sad? I might understand the poor conditions that some live in here, but I don't see how having fewer toys is sad. They seem ok with it. Maybe I'm missing the point.
I was just about to type the same comment until i saw yours XD
They seem okay with it because they don't know anything else, maybe? Anyway, rather than having fewer toys, what I found sad is the kids whose favourite ones are gun replicas.... My childhood was the aftermath of the war and our parents made sure we grew to dislike such toys and games. But, well, hopefully it's just a phase, or something.
Huh, interesting. I see why gun toys might be controversial to some people. I respect that your parents saw it that way. Whatever toys these children have, they have their own imaginations and stories to make.
As someone who grew up with 2 or 3 toys being shared between my sisters and I, all i can say is, the fewer toys you have, the more creative you become. We had to mold dolls and cars and cook stoves and cows, just about anything! Our play houses were a showcase of our imagination, not the amount of money our parents had. Mark you, mine could afford much more than they offered, but they didn't find it necessary
Liwebb lol
Liwebb lol
joshuadowie no
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie no
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie ?
joshuadowie +
joshuadowie yes
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie +
shredderjet lol
joshuadowie haha
joshuadowie like
joshuadowie what
joshuadowie love
joshuadowie lol
joshuadowie love
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie ?
Irny N lol
This comment has been deleted.
LeeAnn Orlando like
professorx good
Klobok ?
This comment has been deleted.
this is ted, my moms had him since she was my age, he's about to be 32, my very favorite and well love with a hole on his head and one on either side of his neck. IMG_202010...50afb4.jpg
He looks sooooooooo cute!!!!!
Love all these kids, they have wonderful imaginations and kids being kids can turn anything into a toy
Why is this considered sad? I might understand the poor conditions that some live in here, but I don't see how having fewer toys is sad. They seem ok with it. Maybe I'm missing the point.
I was just about to type the same comment until i saw yours XD
They seem okay with it because they don't know anything else, maybe? Anyway, rather than having fewer toys, what I found sad is the kids whose favourite ones are gun replicas.... My childhood was the aftermath of the war and our parents made sure we grew to dislike such toys and games. But, well, hopefully it's just a phase, or something.
Huh, interesting. I see why gun toys might be controversial to some people. I respect that your parents saw it that way. Whatever toys these children have, they have their own imaginations and stories to make.
As someone who grew up with 2 or 3 toys being shared between my sisters and I, all i can say is, the fewer toys you have, the more creative you become. We had to mold dolls and cars and cook stoves and cows, just about anything! Our play houses were a showcase of our imagination, not the amount of money our parents had. Mark you, mine could afford much more than they offered, but they didn't find it necessary
Liwebb lol
Liwebb lol
joshuadowie no
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie no
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie ?
joshuadowie +
joshuadowie yes
joshuadowie -
joshuadowie +
shredderjet lol
joshuadowie haha
joshuadowie like
joshuadowie what
joshuadowie love
joshuadowie lol
joshuadowie love
joshuadowie good
joshuadowie ?
Irny N lol
This comment has been deleted.
LeeAnn Orlando like
professorx good
Klobok ?
This comment has been deleted.
this is ted, my moms had him since she was my age, he's about to be 32, my very favorite and well love with a hole on his head and one on either side of his neck. IMG_202010...50afb4.jpg
He looks sooooooooo cute!!!!!
Love all these kids, they have wonderful imaginations and kids being kids can turn anything into a toy