A Photographic essay by Julio Etchart

Play is precious to children. It is a time for growing and learning or just having fun. The toys children play with tell us much about their lives. Many poorer children can't take toys for granted. They may have to work, or fight a war, or they are refugees on the run. Yet even in the worst situations you find children making do with wonderfully improvised toys made from tin cans, wire or wood--whatever they can lay their hands on.

As a father of two small children - Alexander and Camille- I became fascinated with their obsession with toys and with the sheer scale of the chaos surrounding us.

I have covered children's issues for many years, and as a photographer, I have witnessed a fair amount of injustice and poverty around the world. It became my personal crusade to document the world of toys and games, from the factory to the playground via the shopping mall, from rich kids to humble shantytown and rural children.