Giant ice sculptures brought to life with light and video in Belgium

It’s sure to leave you feeling chilly: towering winged warriors, animals with ferocious faces and plants with textured leaves are among sculptures on display at an ice festival in Belgium, brought to life by lights and 3D video transformations. The World’s First Digital Ice Art Museum -- in reality a giant freezer -- features over 80 sculptures carved from 3,000 locally-made blocks, or 500 tonnes, of ice. Forty artists of seven different nationalities have worked to create the exhibits. Alexander Tselebrovskiy, an ice sculptor from Russia, said he likes working with ice as it’s “not forever” and, unlike stone, is not difficult to carve.

Thanks to warm gloves and 15 years of sculpting experience, the cold weather poses him no problems. While this is the exhibition’s 17th year, it is the first time it has used LED screens to light the sculptures, said organiser Alexander Deman. There is also an ice slide and a raised area where guests can view the exhibits from above. Deman said the temporary nature of the art allowed for more creativity. “We can use 100 percent of our fantasy,” he said. “The hair of a princess can be as long as we want.” The museum is open from Saturday until Jan. 6. Warm clothing is highly recommended. — Reuters