Sculptor's poignant ice tribute to Titanic victims

An imaginative sculptor has created a painstakingly detailed tribute to the 1,517 people who died on the Titanic - by making tiny ice models of each individual victim.

Nele Azevedo's artwork features over 1,500 hand-crafted 15in-high melting men, which she placed on the steps of Custom House Square in Belfast.

Her tribute in the city where the doomed liner was built was all the more poignant as it only lasted 20 minutes before the figures melted.

The Brazilian artist's heartfelt creation was part of Belfast's commemorations for the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic in April 1912.

Organisers from the Belfast Festival said the ice tribute was a 'reflective piece that brought home the concept of life slipping away'.

Azevdeo spent the past two weeks in Belfast preparing the ice figures, using three large freezers to keep them at sub-zero temperatures in the run-up to Sunday's ceremony.

Cathy Law, from the Belfast Festival, said: "It was very emotional to watch the figures melting away, leaning and falling on top of each other.

"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."