You Won’t Believe These Stunning Pictures of the World’s Melting Glaciers Aren’t Photographs!

News that the world’s ice caps are melting has become synonymous with climate change.

As we pump more and more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the earth traps more heat, effectively raising global air and water temperatures – hence, causing massive ice melts at both poles.

The planet’s retreating ice has become a bit of a symbol of our collective need to wake up and make a difference in our personal habits, but sadly, many have failed to seriously consider what is happening to the planet. Because of this, artist Zaria Forman has been compelled to capture the melting of the world’s ice caps first hand … literally.

While Forman’s renderings of the glaciers look like photographs, they are actually made completely with pastels.

Forman’s mother was a fine art photographer who claimed she was “a polar bear in another life.” Her mother’s fascination with glaciers is what inspired Forman’s work.

Forman’s mother always dreamed of taking a trip to Greenland to capture the images of their iconic glaciers. Sadly, however, she died in 2011 before she could make the trip. 

Fulfilling her mother’s dream, Forman launched a kickstarter to fund a trip to Greenland and she set off to follow the expedition first forged by American painter, William Bradford in 1869.

A portion of all of the profits from the sale of the pieces from Greenland will be donated to 350.org.

Forman writes on her website, “Documenting climate change, the work addresses the concept of saying goodbye on scales both global and personal. In Greenland, I scattered my mother’s ashes amidst the melting ice.”