On the ground, a spiral resembling that in the game Snakes and Ladders is adorned with hollowed bronze plates on which are reproduced the silhouettes of war toys cast in bronze. The toys have been put into a concrete sarcophagus buried underground – a gesture that is transformed into an opening to peace, symbolized by two metal walls crossing the spiral. Between the two walls, a passage opens, leading to a row of benches at one end and a small Japanese-inspired garden on the other end; each offers a space of tranquillity and intimacy where people can explore their individuality and find serenity.

In 1991 and 1992, some of the toys cast in bronze were replaced with granite plaques on the artist’s initiative.

In 1988, children in the Montréal region made a symbolic gesture: they gave away some 12,700 war toys to be transformed into a monument dedicated to peace. The project, launched by a group called Pacijou, was produced jointly with the Comité régional intersyndical de Montréal. The toys given to the Ville de Montréal in the fall of 1988 gave rise to the city’s decision to have the artwork erected in Jarry Park. The monument is dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi, Burmese human rights and civil liberties leader, and to all people engaged in a search for peace.