Snow Art

Ice sculptures advertising the event.

About fifteen years ago I drove to Breckenridge, Colorado, to see some snow sculptures.  Since that time, every year I think about returning to see artists carving art into blocks of snow but for one reason or another I miss the show.  This year, the Apex Recreational Center had a trip going to the 23rd Annual International Snow Sculpture Championships on Friday, January 25, 2013.

Block of Snow

The small "bus" left at 8:40 a.m. and we arrived at Breckenridge around 11:00 a.m. The whirring of chain saws and the scraping of snow could be heard as artists and their teams worked on a block of snow. Sixteen blocks of ice are placed along Riverwalk Center and the different countries begin carving the snow. When I arrived at the viewing area, already many of the blocks had taken shape and form.

Argentina:  Caracola
Australia:    Emu Egg
Canada/Yukon: An Inuit Moral Tale
Spain/Catalonia: Homage to Picasso
China:  Happy Winter
Ecuador: Fossils
Estonia: Koit from an old fairy tale.
Germany: Shooting Star
Great Britain/Wales: The Seven Deadly Sins
Iceland: Lopapeysa: Snow house with windows representing the pattern of the traditional Icelandic sweater.
Mexico: A mechanical whale
Mongolia: Warriors
Singapore: Love, balance and community represented by Merlion and dolphins.
Alaska: Raven Myth
Breckenridge: Bull rider

7 Deadly Sins

Some of the tools used by artist

I was surprised to find out that each block of snow weighs about 40,000 pounds which equals around 320 tons. The snow is carted from the ski slopes (man made snow) in dump trucks and placed in wooden molds measuring 10x10x12 feet. Volunteer "snow-stompers" climb into the block and stomp the snow to help pack it down. In the 65 hours given to the artists to complete the sculpture they use vegetables peelers, awls, wire, saws and paint scrapers.  Power tools can not be used.


 

Mexico's beginning of a mechanical whale.

Mongolian Warriors

Interactive train for kids

The beginning of the Budweiser Wagon

After wandering around the many clever snow designs, we ate lunch at Downstairs at Eric's, shopped at Shirt Off My Back, had hot tea at a cozy place with soft couches, easy chairs, and small round tables called Crown Cafe and Tavern. The winners of the sculptures would be announced over the weekend and awards distributed on Sunday. The interesting thing is that the talented artists are awarded ribbons and no money is won!

The tourist office let us know about a free shuttle to the gondola for a free ride to the top of the mountain. The horse and buggy ride cost around $25 for a ten minute ride. I am sure there was plenty more to do but it was  2:15 and we were ready to return home.

Me with a boy Induit