Memories of the Melted
A Data-Driven art installation on Climate Change. Showing the past, present and possible futures of Glaciers.
A total of 10% of the Rhône Glaciers ice volume has disappeared over a period of just two years. Not only is it a clear indication of what we lost, but also what is there to come.
By combining 139.000 datapoints from past and future projection data, we developed a model that provides a glimpse into potential future scenarios for the Rhône Glacier.
By swiping left or right, you can navigate from the robust ice coverage of the 1890s to the projected scenarios of 2100. While raising or lowering your hands allows you to adjust the temperature.
2025 is the year of the Glaciers, and it might be the last one.
In 2022, glaciers experienced their worst year on record, with the Rhône Glacier losing a total of 10% of the glacier’s ice volume over a period of just two years—that’s around 11.5 million bottles per minute.
This data-driven artwork shows the glacier’s past and present while bringing future scenarios to our fingertips. As you wave your hands to control the temperature and witness the impact of each degree, the melting glacier causes water to drip from the artwork faster and faster.
Memories of the Melted weaves scientific data and art together to give us an experience of the changing glaciers over the years offering a glimpse into future scenarios.
This data-driven interactive art piece is created in collaboration with leading glaciologists Heidi Sevestre and Matthias Huss. It combines AI, generative art tools, and a combination of big data sets on the past and future predictions of the Rhône glaciers to create a model that people can interact with in real-time. This allows people to explore the past, experience the present, and envision future scenarios that we still can control.
This unique, real-time, data-driven model visualizes the flow of liquids and ice on the mountains that is projected onto a sheet of ice that drips water at the rate of the melting of the glacier. The model can be manipulated by moving your hands. It responds when you swipe left or right to navigate from the robust ice coverage from the 1890s to the projected scenarios of 2100. By raising or lowering your hands to adjust the temperature, you can observe the impact of future scenarios—scenarios that are still within our control (as seen in the SSP scenarios).
As this glacier data comes allive, showing the future scencatios with each degree it is warming, the dripping water of the work turns into dramatically running streams, creating a sense of aesthetic urgency. It is literally putting the power to make change in your hands.
The faster it melts, the louder the sound of water resonates, conjuring the unsettling reality of an accelerating crisis. Each droplet channels the loss of critical water reserves that once safeguarded entire communities. Dedicated to the 2025 International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation, this artwork stands as a living monument to the fragility of our planet’s ice. It reminds us that glaciers do more than captivate tourists: they store our freshwater, regulate our climate, and cradle generations of memories.
Memories of the Melted will continue to adapt its data feed as glacial conditions change—echoing the grave speed at which our planet’s “visual thermometers” are vanishing. It challenges each visitor to not only observe this silent crisis but to recognize our collective power to alter its course.
The Villars Institute commissioned this artwork to use their nearby Glacier as an icon of how science and art together can bring the complexity of system change alive and let it speak to the imagination.
Commissioned by
Villars Institute
First preview
Montreux Jazz Festival
Artist
Thijs Biersteker
Science Collaboration
Heidi Sevestre and Matthias Huss
Production
Woven Studio
Studio Director
Sophie de Krom
Narrative Navigator
Andrea Bandelli
Producer
Krista Middleton
Software
Denisa Půbalová
Technical production
Tomáš Potůček
Soundscape
End of Time
Studio assistants
An de Hoop, Theo Rekelhof, Storm van Gils, Nathan Pottier
Special Thanks to
Mathieu Jaton, Lee Howell, Julia Marton-Lefèvre, Suzan Craig, Roman Guggisberg, Emma Benameur, Joëlle Chevalley, Kenyan Mayet and all involved.
Research and
collaboration
Commisioner
Villars Institute
News article
Two catastrophic years obliterate 10% of Swiss glacier volume
Collaboration
Heidi Sevestre
Collaboration
Matthias Huss
About the Scientists and the Science
“Memories of the Melted” uses glacier data to create a generative artwork that clearly illustrates the changes glaciers have undergone and their projected future. By combining historical, present, and future data, the piece provides a clear and measurable narrative of glacier decline and its implications.
This project combines over 131,900 data points from several key datasets. The glacier inventories (SGI1850 and SGI2016) document glacier extents from the 19th century to the present, providing a comprehensive timeline of glacier coverage. Historical elevation models (from ca. 1880) show how glacier thickness and surface height have changed over time. Annual mass balance datasets (2023 release) measure yearly thickness losses, offering precise trends of retreat.
Ice thickness and bedrock maps (ETHZ release) provide subsurface data critical for understanding glacier dynamics. Future projections, available as simplified shapefiles, make it easier to assess potential glacier coverage under different climate scenarios. This is the first time these datasets have been combined into a generative art project, dynamically interacting to represent glacier systems. The approach uses precise scientific data to create a clear and impactful visualization of climate change’s effects on glaciers.
Matthias Huss is a Swiss glaciologist leading the Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS) program at ETH Zurich. He has published extensively on glacier mass balance and the implications of melting ice for water resources.
“Glaciers are the ambassadors of climate change. Visualizing their rapid decline using art is a fantastic way to bring a strong message across to the crowd.” – Matthias
Heidi Sevestre is a French glaciologist recognized for her work on bridging science, policy, and public awareness. She has conducted research in polar regions and mountainous areas worldwide, contributing critical insights into glacier dynamics and climate impacts.
Their collaborative expertise lends credibility and depth to the data showcased in Memories of the Melted, ensuring that each drip of water and every shift in the ice sheet reflects genuine scientific insights into the world’s rapidly receding glaciers.
The Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) scenarios are a framework used to explore how global societal choices, such as economic growth, inequality, and sustainability, interact with climate change mitigation and adaptation. They range from SSP1 (sustainable development) to SSP5 (fossil-fueled growth), representing pathways with varying levels of greenhouse gas emissions and societal resilience.
Key Resources:
The International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation
Safeguarding glaciers—our planet’s “water towers”—is more urgent than ever. National Geographic underscores how these ice giants provide essential freshwater for billions, regulate local climates, and support biodiversity. Bloomberg also cautions that their rapid melt threatens water security, agriculture, and hydropower generation in vulnerable regions worldwide. By reducing greenhouse gas emissions, implementing sustainable water management, and investing in scientific research, we can protect these fragile ecosystems. Collaboration between governments, communities, and industries is the key to preserving glaciers for future generations. They stand as a testament to our planet’s delicate balance—and it’s up to us to keep it intact. Every measure counts in ensuring their survival.
Tajikistan-led UN Glaciers Initiative has propelled the United Nations General Assembly to designate 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation—an urgent global call to protect our planet’s vital freshwater reserves from the perils of climate change. Supported by the broader UN system, including the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and UNESCO, this initiative underscores the dire consequences of glacier melt on water security, agriculture, and local ecosystems. It unites member states, civil society, and private sector partners to champion research, policy dialogue, and capacity-building, ultimately driving public engagement to safeguard glaciers—the critical “water towers” sustaining biodiversity and livelihoods worldwide.