These Giant Portraits of Federal Politicians Have Popped Up in Sydney and Melbourne

The Federal Election is almost here, and if you're anything like us, you're probably dead sick of politicians. From buses to billboards to your righteously indignant mate's never-ending status updates, it's impossible to look anywhere at the moment without catching a glimpse of some polly's grinning mug. And yet despite this, we can't say we're not a little bit intrigued by a strange new public art installation featuring those very same faces.

A joint project between Instagram, Facebook and Walkley-winning Fairfax photographer Nic Walker, the Election 2016: Our Leaders series consists of ten moving image portraits that attempt to capture, however briefly, the unfiltered emotions of our nation's political leaders. The subjects, which include Malcolm Turnbull, Bill Shorten, Barnaby Joyce, Tanya Plibersek, Nick Xenophon, Anthony Albanese, Richard Di Natale and Penny Wong, were each shown six images chosen specifically to elicit an emotional reaction, which Walker then photographed at a rate of nine frames per second.

"During an election campaign, you get the sense that politicians go into a mode where their image is very crafted and manufactured," said Walker. "This project was all about eliciting a very human response to remind people that love or hate their ideas, politicians are people too."

The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald been publishing the portraits via Instagram, and the results are... kind of unsettling.

A video posted by The Sydney Morning Herald (@sydneymorningherald) on Jun 28, 2016 at 7:01pm PDT

A video posted by The Sydney Morning Herald (@sydneymorningherald) on Jun 28, 2016 at 6:59pm PDT

A video posted by The Sydney Morning Herald (@sydneymorningherald) on Jun 27, 2016 at 6:49pm PDT

A video posted by The Sydney Morning Herald (@sydneymorningherald) on Jun 27, 2016 at 11:30pm PDT

What do you reckon the chances are they showed Barnaby a picture of Johnny Depp?

If you want to see the portraits in real life, you can find them on display today only at Martin Place in Sydney, and until tomorrow at Federation Square in Melbourne.

And please, for the love of God, remember to vote tomorrow. If the thrill of democracy isn't enough of an incentive, try using this map to find the best Election Day sausage sizzle near you.

Visit @federationsquare for a series of 10 moving vignettes of "Our Leaders" captured by Fairfax photographer Nic Walker @nicwalker101. The 10 x portraits involved capturing micro-expressions over a nine-second shoot. Each politician was shown six images that were chosen specifically to elicit a reaction (we won't be revealing what they were, but you can have a guess). Nine frames were shot per second - 81 frames in all - so what you are seeing is reactions to images captured by the camera with no time for the subjects to consciously construct their expressions. 📸📸

A photo posted by The Age (@theagephoto) on Jun 30, 2016 at 5:19pm PDT