Governors Island Inaugural Winter Ice Sculpture Show
Saturday, February 26, 2022 from 2pm - 5pm
Rain Date: Sunday, February 27
Winter Village at Colonels Row on Governors Island
Presented in partnership with The Trust for Governors Island
On Saturday, February 26, 2022, The Trust for Governors Island and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council present the inaugural Governors Island Winter Ice Sculpture Show!
The Trust for Governors Island announced in Fall 2020 that Governors Island will now be open to the public all year-long, expanding access to everything this unique resource in New York Harbor has to offer. The Governors Island Winter Ice Sculpture Show will kick off Governors Island’s inaugural winter season of public programming inside the new Winter Village in historic Colonels Row.
Join us for an afternoon of live ice carving starting at 2pm. The Trust and LMCC invited New York City-based artists to submit designs to be carved live. Ten of these designs, selected by a panel of NYC cultural luminaries, will be brought to life on site in real time by professional ice carvers from Okamoto Studio.
Before the ice carving begins, come early at 1:30pm for a performance by the acclaimed Ice Theatre of New York, which presents accessible ice dance that celebrates joy and collaboration in venues throughout the five boroughs.
Stick around, enjoy everything the Winter Village has to offer (including warm drinks from Joe Coffee at the Café at The Arts Center at Governors Island and Little Eva’s), and help us choose the winner at the end of the event!
Open Call for Proposals for Ice Sculptures
New York City-based artists were encouraged to submit an idea for an ice sculpture, to be completed in a two-hour public event on Saturday, February 26, 2022. Ten artist (or artist team) proposals have been selected by a distinguished jury of NYC cultural leaders. Selected artists or teams will receive an award of $2,000 to participate, and will be provided with tools, production materials, and will be matched with a professional ice carver from Okamoto Studio to complete the work on the day of the event.
Selected Artists
Dennis RedMoon Darkeem
MingLiang Lu
Elizabeth Meggs
Shaheen Salehi/Rengu Zhang
Hannah Schulman
Jessica Segall
Chad Stayrook
Yuliya Tsukerman
Bruce Williams
Mei Yin
Artists of all backgrounds and disciplines are encouraged to propose works that relate to Governors Island and/or New York Harbor. Artists can submit independently or work as a team, but each selected work will receive an award $2,000 no matter how many individuals are included on the team. Artists should propose a work based on the use of a clear ice block sized approximately 40” x 20” x 10” and being mindful that work does not need to remain in block dimensions and will be constructed with ice carving tools allowing it to cut, remolded, and shaped to varying dimensions. The deadline to send your proposals is Wednesday, February 9.
Proposals Due: Wednesday, February 9
Awards Announced: Friday, February 18
Event Date: Saturday, February 26
Rain Date: Sunday, February 27
Amy Andrieux, Executive Director + Chief Curator, MoCADA
Jean Cooney, Director, Times Square Arts
Shaun Leonardo, Multidisciplinary Artist
Shintaro Okamoto, Founder/Creative Director, Okamato Studio
Proposals should include:
- Short description of work
- A rendering or sketch of proposed work (with base ice block no larger than a 40” x 20” x 10”, that can be cut and molded with a resulting work of varying dimensions)
- Short artist or artist team statement
- Artist bio /CV
Each block will be carved on site under the council of a professional ice sculptor, and each artist or team will need to be able to operate power tools (with instruction) and lift ice and heavy objects when needed.
Sculptures will be carved in a two-hour public event on Governors Island, from 3pm – 5pm on Saturday, February 26 with a rain date of Sunday, February 27. Artists will need to be available to be on site starting at 12pm on the day of the show for an ice carving orientation by ice sculpture partner, Okamoto Studio.
Ten projects will be selected by the jury and announced by Friday, February 18, and winning submissions will be published online. Artists are encouraged to invite friends, fans, colleagues, and family to attend day of as additional fun prizes will be awarded to artists and artist teams on the day of the event through audience participation. Sculptures will remain on view on Governors Island until they melt.
Questions? Please contact The Trust’s Arts and Culture team at commissions@govisland.org.
About Okamoto Studio
OKAMOTO STUDIO is an artist collective dedicated to creating sculptures, replicas, installations and performances with uniquely crystal clear ice. Founded in 2003 and based in Long Island City, NY, their projects challenge the existing artistry of ice carving through modern technology and contemporary sensibility.
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
