Melting men: Thousand ice sculptures left to thaw in the sun to highlight climate change in Arctic



A thousand miniature people have slowly melted away in a Berlin square in an effort to draw attention to melting ice caps in Greenland and Antarctica.

Brazilian artist Nele Azevedo carved the figures out of ice and placed them on steps in the central Gendarmenmarkt square where they began to melt within about half an hour.



Temperatures in Berlin were about 73 degrees Fahrenheit (23 Celsius) Wednesday.

Ice cool: Small ice figures are seen on the stairs of Gendarmenmarkt in Berlin, German today as part of an art project by World Wide Fund for Nature



The installation, Melting Men, was meant to spotlight the World Wildlife Fund's warning that melting ice could possibly cause levels to rise more than 3.3 ft by 2100.



The group warns that the warming of the Arctic will change weather in different parts of the world and increase the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Since 2005, Azevedo has been setting up her Melting Men in various countries around the world. Although originally intended as a critic of the role of monuments in cities, environmentalists around the world are adopting her work as climate change art.

Ice ice, baby: Around a thousand ice figures by Brazilian artist Nele Azevedo were melting within 30 minutes symbolizing the effect of global warming

Center of attention: The action was meant to spotlight the World Wildlife Fund's warning that melting ice could possibly cause levels to rise more than 3.3 ft by 2100

When asked if she was a climate activist, Azevedo told greenmuze.com: 'No. I'm an artist, master of visual arts from the University of Sao Paolo.

'This work was conceived as a critical view of the official historical monuments. As the reading and interpretation of an art piece is open, I'm glad it can also speak of urgent matters that threaten our existence on this planet.'

' The project started with solitary figures, later a multitude of small sculptures of ice were placed in public spaces of several cities. The memory is inscribed in the photographic image and shared by everyone. It is not reserved to great heroes nor to great monuments.'

Burnt by the sun: Although originally intended as a critic of the role of monuments in cities, environmentalists around the world are adopting her work as climate change art

Little people: The installation lasted till the last one melted in the heat of the day





