LEWISTON — Twenty-four ice sculptures will be unveiled Friday night at the 4th Annual Ice Festival of Lewiston-Auburn.
The festival runs through Sunday at the Bates Mill Atrium and courtyard off Canal Street.
“It’s a lot,” said Joshua Vink, executive director of L/A Arts which, with help of many local businesses, is hosting the celebration. It’s a fundraiser for L/A Arts.
The buzz of chain saws was in the air Thursday morning as artist Don Chapelle worked on his creations. Chapelle’s company, “Brilliant Ice” in Massachusetts, is known for its art, which he also creates for First Night Boston.
Many of the sculptures this year will represent a product or other item connected to the business sponsoring it. A tampon sculpture will be sponsored by Proctor and Gamble.
“It’s our comic sculpture,” Vink said Thursday.
A skeleton is sponsored by Central Maine Orthopedics.
Other sculptures festivalgoers will see include:
* An 8-foot Yeti, or Abominable Snowman, sponsored by Androscoggin Bank and L/A Arts.
* A large snowflake sponsored by Center Street Dental.
* Buildings replicating Auburn Savings Bank, the Maine Family Federal Credit Union and Mechanics Savings Bank.
* A calculator from Ouellette and Associates.
* A frosty moose head from Central Maine Credit Union.
* Ice footwear from Rancourt and Co. Shoecrafters.
* A Vespa from Davinci’s Eatery.
* A holiday tree by Kaplan University.
Some of the sculptures will be “free form,” with designs embedded in the art, Vink said.
There’ll be two ice bars, one sponsored by Federal Distributors highlighting their Best Damn Root Beer, a specialty hard drink. The other bar is by Southern Wine and Spirits that will feature a luge where bartenders pour drinks at the top into a tube while patrons watch the drink make its way down to the glass.
There’ll also be a wine bar serving drinks with or without alcohol.
With this year’s warmer weather, sculptures will be under a large tent to preserve them in case of rain or sun. The tent is new this year, Vink said. There’s not enough snow to build an igloo, but there will be a large, circular bench made of snow where people can hang out, Vink said.
Live ice-carving demonstrations will be part of the fun.
Also new this year will be a light show Friday and Saturday nights showcasing the sculptures to music.
Inside the Bates Mill Atrium there’ll be live music, and lots of food prepared by local restaurants.
Friday night’s festival will be from 5 to 9 p.m. for ages 21 and up. The bands Three Point Jazz, Skosh and Tumbling Bones will perform. Friday night will be a VIP event but also open to the public.
Ticket prices are $25 online or $30 at the door. One ticket provides three hors d’oeuvres.
The festival continues Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. for ages 21 and up. Live music is by Primo Cubano. Tickets are $15 online, $20 at the door.
Sunday will be Family Day for all ages from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Live music will be by Amy Allen and the Engine. There’ll also be live performances by Off The Wall Juggling, games, activities, hot chocolate.
Ticket sales are going well, Vink said Thursday. “We hope people turn out.” The three-day festival is a way to celebrate the season and showcase what the community can do, he said. “We’re pretty proud of it.”
For tickets or more information, call 782-7228, or go to www.laarts.org.
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