Shards of ice fly as a sculptor gets to work at the Bloor-Yorkville ice fest on Saturday afternoon.
The artist pictured was one of around a dozen taking part in the festival's ice-carving competition on Yorkville's Cumberland Street.
A clear preference for animal shapes was in evidence among the carvers present, with squirrels, moose and eagles making appearances. Though each was delicately carved, the tools being used were not. The carvers attacked their blocks of ice with chainsaws and gusto, though they later reverted to more precision equipment for the fine details.
The public were invited to vote for the winning sculpture, but among the kids present the clear favourite was apparent by mid afternoon. That was the time when the organizers started carving up a huge block of ice nearby and liberated the candy they had cunningly frozen within it.
It seems that among the school-aged crowd rendering wildlife in ice only gets you so much cred. But freezing candy? That's really cool.
Bloor-Yorkville Ice Fest, 416-928-3553 ext. 24, Feb. 25 & 26