Installation of D-Day silhouettes opens at fort

The silhouettes are made from recycled advertising hoardings and hand-cut into shape

An art installation dedicated to British servicemen who died on D-Day opens to the public at its new home on Wednesday.

The 1,475 life-sized silhouettes, known as Standing with Giants, depicts the number of men, under British command, who were killed on 6 June 1944.

Made from recycled advertising hoardings, then hand-cut into shape, they have been installed across the parade ground at Fort Nelson in Hampshire.

They look down onto Portsmouth Harbour, from where many of the men they represent set sail for Normandy to liberate Northern Europe from the Nazis.

The installation most recently stood at the British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, located above Gold Beach, one of the landing areas for British forces, where those depicted by the silhouettes would have been killed.

Standing with Giants was created by Dan Barton, from Stanton Harcourt, near Witney in Oxfordshire, who described the work as "The People's Tribute".

He said: "I've had so many people cry in my arms and I can't even begin to tell you what that feels like. It's life-changing.

"It's a way of telling youngsters to be mindful of where their freedom came from."

The 1,475 life-sized silhouettes depict the number of men, under British command, killed on D-Day

Teams of volunteers, many of them ex-services, helped Mr Barton install the figures. Each one was drilled into the ground, with the most exposed supported with ropes.

Andy Gatherer, a volunteer and veteran of the Falklands War, believes the display is a powerful way of reminding people of the human cost of conflict.

He said: "I lost 13 of my shipmates on HMS Glamorgan back in 1982, and we had to bury them at sea.

"So the 13 silhouettes that I have from the Falklands display, I can look at and I feel they are my shipmates.

"I can touch them and walk amongst them and feel like they are back with me again."

Terry and Carol Nye found the experience profoundly moving

Terry and Carol Nye, visiting the fort and walking among the figures, found the experience profoundly moving.

Mr Nye said: "It represents the futility of war. It really is something that everyone should come and see, certainly the youngsters.

"I found it quite emotional when I first came in and looked. These are human beings that gave their lives for us, and I think that really brings it home when you are stood here."

Falklands War veteran Andy Gatherer believes the display can remind people of the human cost of conflict

The installation is free to view, but Royal Armouries, which runs Fort Nelson, is asking people to register first.

It will stay at the fort much longer than planned, up until 26 January, because of high interest.

The silhouettes will then cross the English Channel to return to Normandy for next year's D-Day commemorations.