These two monumental images are works of digital craft, presenting complimentary ideas in support of the individual liberty and amity that are the foundation of societal achievement. In the first work, Freedom, the figure and setting honor the human right of free-thinking and expression, and its relation to an emergent Rotterdam skyline that embodies reinvention, risk, and embrace of the future. These qualities amount to fertile soil for discovery and innovation, and help set up the work Friendship, which relates to the interplay between the real, ‘what is’, and the unreal, ‘what could be’. The image is also a tribute to the rapport that forms between what can seem to be opposing concepts, such as nature and the city. The creation of the two-part work also demonstrates some of its themes: the artist worked on this scale, theme, and medium for the first time. His images most frequently appear on Instagram under the tag @giantific, offering up surreal and thought-provoking portraits of Rotterdam’s unique culture. The artist’s approach with these new works is a departure, relating to pre-digital art history, such as the murals of Diego Rivera for Ford in Detroit completed in 1933, or the series Four Freedoms, by Norman Rockwell, from 1943. Tim Waldekker has worked as a photographer under the name ‘Giantific – a Creative Giant’ since 2015. Through social media accounts such as Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest, he shares his photographs which are often taken in the city centre of Rotterdam. His photo manipulations create surreal environments. Some quirky, such as a giraffe in the Maastunnel, some more critical, such as imagery of the city in a post-apocalyptic setting. Sponsor Science Gallery Rotterdam Visit artist's website