Individual piles of rice represent various statistics , such as " deaths in The Holocaust " or " the population of England " . As the show progresses , new piles are made by " curators " . Topical events are also covered , such as a pile representing the people who lost jobs upon the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers , which happened during the September 2008 exhibition . Some of the piles are shaped to represent something associated with the statistic , such as the rice representing the crowd at a football match being in the shape of a stadium , with players in formation . Visitors , or people using the show 's website , are invited to suggest new statistics for inclusion
The Holocaust
The Holocaust
Of All The People In All The World