Keeping Cool!Each March, the World Ice Art Championships are held up here in Fairbanks. People come from all over and create intricate works of art from blocks of ice. No, I'm not talking about those little sculptures that crop up on tables at weddings... We're talking BIG -- and fancy. mostly.
I took some photos in 2003 and 2004 , but have always wanted to
try my hand at it. This year, Katie and I took a 2-hour ice carving class from the Museum of the North (a great museum on campus), where we tried our hand on a 2x2x2 carving. (Shown below)
What started as a little cartoon penguin ended up as a really awsome little cartoon duck. While we were carving, it snowed probably about 5".
We were both amazed at how simple it was! Perhaps we've found a new hobby: There's only one way to find out, though -- Try it again!
SOOoooo, we each bought a 3-pack of woodworking chisels, plunked down the entry fee, and entered the Amateur Open
The block we carved was about 5'x3'x3'. Man, what a lot of ice : 2700 lbs worth (according to the Ice Alaska website). I figure that we must have carved off at least 1000 lbs.
It took two full days, (and more) to get our penguins into shape, while visitors strolled around and took photos of us working. At one point, I was focused on using a dremel to carve into a tight spot. I turned my head and nearly poked my eye out on this guy's camcorder. He'd just creeped up and was filming over my shoulder at a distance of, oh, maybe 3 inches. Yipes.
(This photo is of a not-quite-finished product. The final product can be seen at the world ice champtionships website)
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