Snow and ice art

• Snow art uses blocks of snow that are sawn, carved and shaped.
• Ice art works with frozen water and can also create sound.
• The World Snow Festival in Grindelwald began in 1983 with a snow figure of Heidi.
• Formen in Weiss in Ischgl has been a snow-sculpture competition since 1994.
• Concerts with ice instruments took place in Schnalstal in 2010.
• Snow and ice works are temporary and change with weather and temperature.

Snow and ice offer artists different properties. Compacted snow can be shaped into large forms, but depends on temperature, moisture and its surroundings. At the World Snow Festival in Grindelwald, international teams work on large snow blocks. In Ischgl, the Silvretta Arena becomes an open-air gallery where artist pairs translate changing themes into snow. Both examples show how art can become part of a winter landscape and remain visible for only a limited time.

Ice can also be used as a sound source: instruments made of ice were played at the iceMusic Festival in Schnalstal. Norwegian musician Terje Isungset was among the musicians at the fourth edition in 2010, when concerts took place in a glacier ice cave. The event brought ice art together with music and alpine architecture.

The World Snow Festival Grindelwald developed from a snow figure of Heidi carved by Japanese artists into an international festival. The works relate to the Eiger setting and to changing annual themes.

Formen in Weiss in Ischgl combines a competition with an open-air gallery in the ski area. Since 1994, international artists have shaped snow into large sculptures based on changing themes. The ice music in Schnalstal, by contrast, focuses not on images but on the sound of ice. Together, the three examples show sculptural, landscape-based and musical approaches to snow and ice art.

For outdoor art, change is part of the material: wind, sun and temperature can soften edges, alter shapes or dissolve works. The surroundings also shape how the art is experienced: a sculpture in a ski area feels different from a concert in an ice cave. The common feature is a limited lifespan, which contributes to the works’ appeal.