← All charities

Bran Symondson

One Small Step

A single footprint. Two very different consequences.

London · 2019 · MAG (Mines Advisory Group)

£7,000

raised for MAG

Image to come: the One Small Step helmet

For One Small Step, Bran Symondson transformed an astronaut helmet into a confronting reflection on human achievement and the enduring consequences of conflict.

Created for an exhibition marking the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, his artwork connected the celebrated act of stepping onto the Moon with the devastating danger of stepping onto a landmine.

The meaning behind the helmet

Inside the helmet, Bran incorporated an image of an Apollo 11 lunar footprint. An enduring symbol of exploration became the starting point for a different conversation: the vulnerability of people walking through land contaminated by war.

Bran deliberately damaged and cracked the helmet’s exterior to evoke the destructive impact of a mine detonating beneath someone’s feet. An object designed to protect human life became a representation of its fragility.

Inside, he placed two butterfly mines: small anti-personnel mines whose name creates a disturbing contrast with the butterflies that appear throughout his artistic practice.

A specially commissioned badge completed the work. Reinterpreting the initials NASA as “Not A Safe Area”, Bran turned a familiar emblem of exploration into a warning.

Image to come: detail of the lunar footprint and butterfly mines inside the helmet

Each element served the same idea: a single step can represent extraordinary progress, or cause irreversible harm.

Art supporting landmine clearance

Bran created the helmet for One Small Step, an exhibition curated by Ben Moore and presented at The Other Art Fair in King’s Cross, London, from 4–7 July 2019.

The project invited artists to transform astronaut helmets, with participants including:

  • Anish Kapoor
  • The Chapman Brothers
  • Joana Vasconcelos
  • D*Face
  • Mr Brainwash
  • Chris Levine
  • Bran Symondson

Proceeds supported MAG (Mines Advisory Group) and its work clearing landmines and unexploded bombs from communities affected by conflict.

Image to come: the exhibition at The Other Art Fair

£7,000 raised

Bran’s helmet sold for £7,000, contributing to the exhibition’s fundraising for MAG.

Drawing on his experience as a soldier and his continuing exploration of conflict through art, Bran used the anniversary to direct attention towards people for whom walking safely across their own land remains an uncertain prospect.

His contribution connected the ambition to explore another world with the responsibility to make this one safer.

← Back to all charities

One Small Step · MAG · London, 2019