By Michelle Zhou
Oh, just how cold can this weather get? While I was expecting early warm weather this year, we got hit by extreme cold weather. It’s always below zero! However, it seems that not all adults are grumping about shoveling snow and low temperatures. At the Bloor-Yorkville Icefest, it seems that everyone’s cheerful! Come on in, and let’s take a better look into the depths of this free community event!
This Icefest is based all upon marvelous ice sculptures.
The Egyptian theme is fascinating, broad, and wide-ranged, giving the talented sculptors lots of topics to choose from. You can vote for your favourite sculpture, and the winner gets a prize! There were lots of different sculptures, all very different, and all of high quality. There were gods and goddesses, pharaohs, and there was even a pyramid! Each sculpture had a sponsor somewhere on it.
The sculptors used many tools—even chainsaws came in handy! The ice they used was smooth, and flawless. It was made in a factory, as we heard someone say as we walked to marvel at the next formidable icy creation. They used soaking snow as glue. They also used chisels, brushes, and whirring machinery with different tools on the end, using them like intricate drills.
Why do ice sculptures need glue? If you make a mistake in ice carving, the best you can do is to give up and restart. However, we witnessed one competitor’s ingenious idea of how to attach a tail to his winged lion, which is also known in myths as the wise Sphinx. Not only did his method work, it gave the carving some dimension. It was once flat, like a drawing on thick paper, but the tail stuck out forward, curling slightly, resting on the side of the statue. It made it much more interesting. First, the artist carved the tail. He drilled a strangely shaped hole on the backside, then carved the part of the tail going in very specifically. He inserted it in with a “clicky” sort of a sound, then chipped away parts of the tail so it would fit in better. He used the glue to hold it in place. Suddenly, voilà! The tail was complete!
Not all the statues there were based on Ancient Egypt. There were also some other advertising or decorating statues here and there, for more entertainment. There was even a giant ice camel for people to climb upon and sit there, and have their picture taken!
No, the wonderful sculptures weren’t the only attractions. There were booths where you could buy maple taffy, free orange juice samples, free tea samples, and there was even a booth called “Jacques’ Bistro,” based on the French culture. There was also a little booth where you could have your picture taken with three cute minions: Bob, Stuart, and Kevin, who star in the next minion movie, Minions! Even though they didn’t look like the real ones, nor were they the correct size, it was a great privilege that was enjoyable.
Mmm… making me think about all the food there is just making my mouth water! If you were there, we bet you’d be buying maple taffies and macarons in no time! It was fun to watch how the maple taffies were made. A thick layer of snow was spread on an exquisitely carved ice table. A jug with a hot, thick, maple-based liquid was aside, and occasionally, the maker would take it and pour out a thick stream on the snow. He then took a popsicle stick and rolled it over the stream, gathering the taffy up into a small lollipop.
Voice K got a chance to get a sneak peek at the behind-the-scenes of the Icefest, through the voice of the event organizer: Rick Kaczmarek. We got a chance to ask him about nearly everything that he had planned about the Icefest.
We wanted to know what gave them the idea to make sculptures that are related to Ancient Egypt.
“First of all [we] came up with a theme that would go with our 10th landmark anniversary here, so we thought, ‘Frozen in Time’ has a theme,” said Kaczmarek. The Ancient Egyptian sculptures then came up very quickly. There were over 40 ice sculptures featured in the village of Bloor-Yorkville Park.
The ice-carving competition featured 12 ice carvers from Ontario and they were competing for the people’s choice ice sculpture. “They volunteered their time and their creative talents to come here and compete. The public can vote for their favourite ice sculpture in the park.” said Kaczmarek.
Kaczmarek is glad that the weather’s been really cooperative. This year’s festival is their most snowy Icefest. “We’re embracing our weather this weekend.”
Two kids were cooperative enough to let us have a quick, short interview with them. Selena queried them what they would do if they were an ice sculptor there at the park. The little boy answered, “I’d run around and break every sculpture.”
His older sister answered, “I would be [making] a palm tree or a snowman.”
This was one of the best places Voice K has visited! Let’s hope that not only the incredible world of Ancient Egypt will be frozen in time within these ice sculptures, and that this memorable trip will be frozen in time, forever within our magazines!
