by Maria Sofou
As the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) began to unfold last week in Paris, Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson teamed up with geologist Minik Rosing and created a stunning artwork to raise the alarm about climate change – Ice Watch Paris consists of twelve immense blocks of ice, harvested from free-floating icebergs in a fjord outside Nuuk, Greenland, arranged in clock formation on the Place du Panthéon in Paris, left to melt. The powerful artwork is already half gone, dramatically making its point: Greenland’s ice is melting and the consequences will soon be catastrophic.
“As an artist I hope my works touch people, which in turn can make something that may have previously seemed quite abstract into reality. Art has the ability to change our perceptions and perspectives on the world and Ice Watch makes the climate challenges we are facing tangible. I hope it will inspire shared commitment to taking climate action,” Eliasson explains.
