As a tribute to the Empire series, Charles Fréger presents here a miniature royal guard. Beneath the headdresses and chinstraps, the doll-like faces of young boys, all members of the Tivoli Park Guard. Located in the center of Copenhagen, Tivoli is both an amusement park and a leisure park. Among its attractions are a pirate ship, a pantomime theater and a guard, whose formation dates back to the creation of the park in 1843. The boys – no girls allowed – are all volunteers. In addition to standing guard, they paraded and played music. Charles Fréger, impressed by the will and determination of these children, all in their function, chose to photograph them in a way that would give the measure of their solemnity. The protocol will therefore be the same as that adopted for the Empire series in particular. Nothing in the field indicates that we are in an amusement park. The neutral background of any room, a framing in American plan, a pose of front or profile, the glance in that of the photographer. The Tivoli guards are a serious matter for the country, they have integrated the pantheon of the unavoidable figures of the Danish popular mythology. They are easily found here and there represented as logos, stuffed animals, toys. The photography here, far from “gimmicking” them, is in keeping with the military rigor to which these boys bear witness.
