Brazilian artist pays ‘ice tribute’ to Titanic victims

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London, October 22: An artist paid a poignant tribute to the 1,517 men, women and children who died when the Titanic sank on her maiden voyage on 15 April 1912 by creating an ice figure for each individual victim and launched it on Sunday at Custom House Square in Belfast – the city where the great ship was built.

Volunteers placed the little melting men – each about 15in high – on the steps of the square and then the crowds watched as 1,517 figures slowly melted and disappeared.

The tribute by was part of the commemorations for the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic.

“It was very emotional to watch the figures melting away, leaning and falling on top of each other,” the BBC quoted Cathy Law from Belfast Festival at Queen’s which organised the event as saying.

“It took about 20 minutes for the figures to melt and everyone stopped and watched. One child said it was as if the figures were crying. It was very poignant,” Law said.

Nele Azevedo from Brazil said she was happy with the response to her work which is part of the Minimum Monument project which, its organisers say, celebrates what is ephemeral and diminutive, as opposed to what is monumental and grandiose.

She spent the past two weeks in Belfast preparing her ice sculptures, using three large freezers to store them in the run-up to Sunday’s ceremony. (ANI)