GREENFIELD — Ice sculptors chiseled away Friday, bringing their visions to life for Greenfield’s 98th annual Winter Carnival.
The sculptures, which will be on display along Main Street throughout the weekend, range from dragons and dolphins to “Baby Yoda.” Each artist was sponsored by a different business along Main Street, where they worked throughout the day. They used anything from chainsaws, chisels, router drills and blowtorches to mold the two, 300-pound blocks of ice donated by Summit Ice.
“I try to find carvings that are fun for kids and adults,” said sculptor David Barclay.
Barclay, a Northampton native, chose a dragon for his sculpture and was sponsored by Greenfield Garden Cinemas. This is his third year competing in the Winter Carnival. While he created a dragon in his first year, and a reindeer in his second, this design “is more intricate.”
He had been working outside the theater since roughly 9 a.m., he said, and was getting ready for the final touches around 3 p.m. He used a drill tool to carve the scales and highlight the dragon’s final features before going over the sculpture with a blowtorch. According to Barclay, the clear ice is created by continuously “agitating” the water as it freezes so no air bubbles are trapped inside.
“It makes it fun when you’re done,” Barclay said. “You get rid of the snow shavings, go over it with a torch and it’s really clear. It adds another layer to it.”
Stationed outside of Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center was Mark Bosworth, of Athol, crafting a mythical winged lion. He has been competing in the Winter Carnival for the last several years, and has over 20 years experience as an artist.
As a professional wood sculptor, he said most of his experience is with chainsaw carving, though he is skilled in hand carving, too. This year’s idea came to Bosworth “on the fly” and he enjoyed the fact that, compared to wood, ice is “fast and easy” to mold so he could realize his vision before it faded away.
“Ice is a nice medium to work with,” he said, while carving out the lion’s mouth with a die-grinder.
Greenfield resident Linda Smith was touring the sculptures with her grandson, Soren, who was visiting from Colorado. While they hadn’t seen all of the sculptures yet, Soren said Barclay’s dragon was his favorite so far.
Attending the carnival for his third year was sculptor Peter Vacchina, of Pittsfield, sponsored by the Greenfield Gallery. He has been a marble sculptor for 20 years and said he enjoys competing in ice sculpting contests when he can. It’s also a good reason to get outside in the winter, he said. This year’s inspiration came from fishing trips with his brother in Pittsfield.
“This is the one that got away,” Vacchina said of the large, fully scaled fish sculpture.
Using a specially designed tool, made by attaching his father’s old ice block plane blade attached to an old ax handle, Vacchina was able to chisel off large chunks of ice and delicately shave away without switching devices. He then used a router drill for the small curves of the scales.
Competing for the first time this year is Nathan Peterson, of Leverett, whose sculpture of Baby Yoda can be found on the corner near sponsor Mesa Verde. He credited the idea for the pop-culturally relevant sculpture to his daughter. Peterson is a stone mason by trade and had been working on the ice sculpture since 10 a.m. He said he enjoyed hearing the feedback from pedestrians as they made their way down Main Street.
Cheryl Baker, a Greenfield native, said she has viewed the ice sculptor competition for a few years now. Her favorite this year, she said, is the sculpture of two dolphins in the form of a heart outside of the Greenfield Community College building on Main Street.
“The sculptures impress me more and more ever year,” Baker said.
A few sculptors thought the weather was too warm to fully realize their visions. Wayne Miller, from Walpole, N.H., was working on a dragon sculpture outside Green Fields Market with his wife, Meg Kupiec. Due to the relatively warm weather, the couple was unable to attach the dragon’s wings because they were too heavy to freeze with enough support.
The dragon perched on the tower with a large pillar of icy flames billowing from its open jaws. Kupiec said the pillar was actually a last-minute addition, inspired by the local Poet’s Seat Tower which they saw as they entered Greenfield for the competition.
Other sculptures in the competition included an outline of Massachusetts outside the Greenfield Baptist Church, created by members of Franklin County Technical School, another dragon on the corner near Greenfield Savings Bank and an eagle near Ryan & Casey Liquors.
Residents can enter a vote for their favorite at the ballot box on the Greenfield Common by Sunday at 10 a.m.
Zack DeLuca can be reached at zdeluca@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 264.