Contributed by Carmen Summerfield
9th Annual Ice Castles on the Green
12/10/2016 – 2PM-4PM
Valley Arts Alliance
The Palmer Green Area
FREE Event
Colony Christmas is an old fashioned three-day celebration of Christmas past and present in Palmer that features horse-drawn sleigh rides, reindeer, gingerbread houses and holiday carolers. As part of the celebration, on the second Saturday, December 10, 2016 the Valley Arts Alliance will be producing their 9th Annual Ice Castles on the Green!
Ice Castles on the Green consists of unique winter ice sculptures created by some of the Valley’s best artists. Our sculptures will be constructed behind the Dahlia Street Market on the Palmer Green, the area in Palmer also known as the “quad” or “square” located between the Borough Office, the Colony Inn and the Dahlia Street Market.
The Dahlia Street Market was built in the mid-1930s as the colony’s Trading Post and Post Office. Palmer’s Mayor, DeLena Johnson, and her husband, Steve, purchased the abandoned building a few years ago and restored it to glory. Now it hosts the Palmer City Alehouse (where everyone is invited in for a “warm up” on Saturday afternoon during the Ice Castles on the Green).
Our centerpiece at Ice Castles on the Green will be an ice sculpture based on the glass pyramids at the Louvre in Paris. But unlike the 4-sided pyramid at the Louvre, we constructed a 3-sided pyramid. Each side is an equilateral triangle with a base of 10 feet and a supporting structure to hold 16 triangular sheets of ice.
To form the required 48 triangular sheets of ice, we made wooden molds, 30 inches at the base and one and a half inches thick, coated with an epoxy resin for strength and waterproofing.
We have other remarkable ice sculptures lined up, but we’re always looking for other talented artists to help us create unique ice sculptures at Ice Castles on the Green! So bring your own ice, in any shape or form, and help us build! For inspiration, please visit our website ValleyArtsAlliance.com/Archives.
Most of the ice sculpting will occur from 2pm-4pm, but visit us any time and watch the ice sculptures take shape! So join us (and join in) on the second Saturday, December 10th, as we create another wonderful Ice Castles on the Green!