Globe Children This sculpture is part of a new body of work by Shonibare exploring the theme of climate change. Two children balance precariously on a globe of the world, its surface shaded with colors that indicate zones of warming or environmental shift. This information is based upon an infrared heat map of the world that indicates those regions currently affected by temperature changes. The artist's use of children in place of adults is quite strategic--suggesting that we are like children "toying" with the world, blithely unaware of the full consequences of our actions. The globe is literally held "in balance" by its two young protagonists, yet their fall is imminent unless we choose to take action. The children are attired in clothing from the Victorian era--a period synonymous with vast technological change and socio-economic expansion that resulted in the creation of factories and what we now call the Industrial Revolution. In the early years of the 21st century we are undergoing a similar shift, the rewards and pitfalls of which will be reaped by subsequent generations.