Post
Oxfam Carves Maasai Warrior in Ice to Highlight the Human Cost of Climate Change
When: Thursday 10 and Friday 11 December 2009
Where: Next to the Climate Rescue Station near Hall H in the Bella Centre, Copenhagen
What: Oxfam Carves Maasai Warrior in Ice to Highlight the Human Cost of Climate Change begins tomorrow.
Huge statues of Maasai warriors will be carved out of ice at the UN Conference Centre in Copenhagen. Two 3m high warriors – a man and a woman holding a baby - will be sculpted over a 12 hour period with chainsaws and chisels from 4 tonnes of ice. Oxfam is erecting the ice warriors as a powerful reminder of the human cost of climate change as the first week of negotiations come to a close.
The Maasai tribes of Kenya are being hit hard by the changing climate – one of the worst droughts in living memory has devastated Maasai’s herds of cattle – and their livelihoods.
The artists:
Soren Nielsen is from Christiansfield from Copenhagen has been sculpting since 1975
Morten Moller lives on the island of Samso and has been sculpting since 1995
Mikael Plougstrup Nielsen is also a Danish sculptor who lives in Copenhagen.
No man made energy has been used to produce the ice – it was cut from river ice in Lapland and transported to Copenhagen on a truck which was delivering Christmas trees.
The event:
*09:00 – 20:00 Thursday 10 December: artists at work with chainsaws and chisels on the ice sculpture throughout the day. The sculpture will be back lit in the evening.
*14:30 – 15:00 Thursday 10 December: the image of the Maasai will begin to emerge from the blocks of ice. The artists, people living on the climate front line in Africa, and spokespeople from Oxfam will be available for interview
*10:00 – 11:00 Friday 11 December: pictures and filming opportunities of the complete ice warriors as melting away. The artists, people living on the climate front line in Africa, and spokespeople from Oxfam will be available for interview.
I'll update this with photos as they come, and high resolution images will be posted for use on Oxfam's flickr.
If you're in Copenhagen, my advice is to go see the artists and their works with your own eyes.
UPDATE
Images of ice sculptures in progress below:
Comments
Thanks Adela for this post.
It reminds me we have a festive event, here, and sculptors cut the stone in an unused career.
In the ice it is for one moment only!
@Paul
You’re talking about the
‘Concours International de Sculpture sur Glace’ in Valloire?
L.E. Images added.
Thanks,
No it is near Saintes! (France)
Each year it is a moment of big emotion.
This unused career is very large and there is a lot of things to do!