Ice Alaska News and Blog
Volunteers are the Heart of Ice Alaska
A volunteer is someone who gives time and energy to help others without expecting payment; volunteering is an act of heroism on a grand scale. Ice Alaska is a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers. They provide the talent and energy to put on the largest...
Ice Alaska Novice Competition
Our five student carvers from Oregon Coast Culinary Institute (OCCI), along with their mentor and instructor, Chris Foltz and his wife, Kendra, have returned to Coos Bay, Oregon. Each of these fine culinary students had to earn their way to come to Fairbanks and...
Final Horn as blown
The final horn of 2025 has blown. The Single Block Ice Carving Competition is over. We will have to wait until the award ceremony on the 2nd at 8:00pm to find out who the talented winners are. The Novice Competition has also ended and we are waiting to learn 1st, 2nd,...
Sculptor Support
The heart of the operations for carving ice and why everything works efficiently is because of Sculptor Support. For 25 years, one name is synonymous with Sculptor Support and that is Joan Foote. Everything that comes under helping the ice competition and the...
Into the Woods
A forest, in literature, often represents hope, renewal and optimism. During the Romantic era, forests were frequently portrayed as places of solace and introspection. The magic woods today, with the beginning of Single Block this morning, sort of felt that way. After...
International Double Blocks
There have been a lot of international winners this year, 2025, at the World Ice Championships. The Double Block award ceremony was tonight at 8:00pm and the first place went to a duo of Canadians as well as brothers. It is entitled Final Meditation and its talented...
Ice Sculpting 101
Ice Sculping 101: 1. Step 1: Make the Ice. First step is take a plastic container and fill it with water. ...2. Step 2: Make & Trace a Template. Cut a template out of cardboard or wood into whatever shape you want to cut. ... 3. Step 3: Chisel Out the Shape....
Double Block Day Two
Ephemeral nature is the quality of something being short-lived, fleeting, or transitory. Ice sculpting is an example of something with ephemeral nature because it is fleeting in nature but shows off its natural beauty in the short time it is here.And just like that,...
“No human masterpiece has ever been created without great labor.”
“No human masterpiece has ever been created without great labor.”The Double Block Competition began this morning, February 22, with the blowing of the horn. “A dynamic duo making masterpieces using only two blocks of ice – a sensation to see.” The teams have until...
A Little IceAlaska History
Ice Alaska is a volunteer-driven organization that hosts the World Ice Art Championships. It and World Ice Art began in Fairbanks in the 1930’s to celebrate the end of winter. This “winter carnival” included music, dancing, parades, dog races and ice carving. Ice...
Winners of Multi Block
The winners of the 2025 Multiblock were honored at the Awards Ceremony tonight at the Ice Alaska Ice Park. There were 12 teams of multiblock carvers. Each team had 4 sculptors and 9 blocks of ice. They had 6 days in which to carve. Every sculpture is created from...
Multi Block 2025
At 10:00 pm tonight Multiblock will end. The sculptors will be expected to put down all tools and leave their sites. All sites are expected to be cleaned and ready to be judged at 10:15. Scoring is based on ten categories, 100 points each. Scores of 900 or higher are...
A View of Harbin
Well, the Multi Block is almost finished. We are all eager to see the final masterpieces of these incredible artists. While walking through the woods tonight there was almost a feeling of calm. It was very quiet. The sculptors are working on small things now, so you...
Many into One-getting closer to one.
Today marks the end of day four for the multi block carvers. The “blocks” are all looking a “tad bit “closer to being completed. I noticed a theme in several of them-animals. It’s fun to speculate what these sculptures are going to look like, as they are still all...
Mid Point for Multi Block
Day three of Multi Block; half way through the event. Ice is spread around each site and it’s too early to envision a finished masterpiece. Progress is being made, however. Pictures are better than words right now. Just compare the first and last day and you’ll see...
Day Two of Multi Block
A big thank you to Brittany will begin tonight’s conversation. She has been the volunteer in charge of lighting for five years at Ice Alaska and she is wonderful at it. If you come at night you will be completely enchanted, charmed, and delighted by the mesmerizing...
We are open for Business!
Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone. In Fairbanks today the Ice Alaska event of 2025 has begun. The park opened at noon and has been busy all afternoon. The slides are busy, the snack bar is busy. We are b-a-c-k!More importantly, to ice carvers it means the World Ice Art...
Chaos into Order
Chaos: a state of disorder or confusion, with no order or organization: It’s fun to watch chaos turn into order. It’s two days before Valentine’s Day, the day the Fairgrounds turn into Ice Alaska, home of the World Ice Art Championships. Multi Block ice carving, (4...
Ice Alaska, 2025
It is Tuesday, February 2025. It’s fun being back in Fairbanks awaiting the opening of the Ice Alaska park at the local fairgrounds. The ice carving competition begins with the horn announcing the beginning of the Multi Block competition the morning of Valentine’s...
Ice alaska
Home of the 2023 World Ice Art ChampionshipsCompetition: February 17 through March 17
Park is open February 17 through March 31