Governors Island Arts and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council to Co-Host Second Annual Ice Sculpture Show
Feb 3, 2023 2:06 pm
The winners of the People's Choice award at the 2022 ice sculpture show. Photo by Julienne Schaer
Governors Island Arts and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) announced today they will co-host Governors Island’s second annual Winter Ice Sculpture Show. This one-of-a-kind event will take place on Saturday, February 18, 2023, from 12 to 5p.m. at the Governors Island Winter Village. The festive event provides New Yorkers and visitors from around the world with the singular opportunity to experience live ice carving, alongside all of the open space, cultural, educational, and historic resources and attractions that the Island offers year-round.
“The annual ice sculpture show provides direct support for local artists and brings New Yorkers another joyful, ephemeral public art experience on Governors Island in the winter months,” said Clare Newman, President and CEO of the Trust for Governors Island. “This unique event is one of many reasons to visit the Island during the winter season. We can’t wait to once again welcome visitors of all ages to come and enjoy music and warm drinks, experience the thrill of live ice sculpting, and vote on their favorite works.”
“Governors Island is known as a major hub for the arts and creativity in New York City, the region and beyond, and this ice sculpture competition highlights that synergy and the wonderful programming that has made the Island its home,” said Meredith Johnson, VP of Arts & Culture and Head Curator for the Trust. “We look forward to welcoming our artists and a curious public to witness the spectacle of carving ice with a chainsaw, a thrill that has few rivals.”
“We are delighted to partner with Governors Island Arts for a second year of wintertime fun and community-building at the 2023 Ice Sculpture Event,” said Craig T. Peterson, President of LMCC. “Through our Open Call, we look forward to welcoming artists from all disciplines to design one-of-a-kind sculptures, and connecting the public with the wonderful varieties of artistic expression in New York City found all year long at Governors Island.”
In late 2022, Governors Island Arts and LMCC invited New York City-based artists to submit designs through an open call. Ten designs were selected by an esteemed panel of New York City cultural luminaries and will be brought to life by the artists during this live, marathon ice sculpting session. Each selected artist will be paired with professional ice carvers from Okamoto Studio on the day of the event. Visitors are invited to witness this real-time ice carving and vote on their favorite sculpture for the “People’s Choice Award” at the end of the event.
This year’s show will also feature DJ sets from Red Corvette and DJ Savage curated by Half Moon, an independent music and media company that covers and reinforces emerging culture around the world through radio, events, editorial, and educational workshops with headquarters in New York City and Los Angeles. In addition to food and drink available from year-round Governors Island vendor Little Eva’s, food trucks operated by Black-owned businesses Ms. Spudz and GG’s Fish & Chips will be featured during the event in honor of Black History Month. The Governors Island Winter Village, including the 7,000-square foot ice skating rink, seasonal food options, lawn games, fire pits, and more, will be open to the public throughout the day.
The esteemed jury panel that selected entrants and will select winners includes: Jonathan Gardenhire, Assistant Director of Individual Giving at MoMA PS1; Natasha Logan, Deputy Director of Creative Time; Shintaro Okamoto, Founder/Creative Director of Okamoto Studio, artist José Parlá, and artist Duke Riley.
During the winter months, Governors Island is open to the public daily from 7am to 6pm. Trust for Governors Island-operated ferries run daily between the Battery Maritime Building at 10 South Street in Lower Manhattan and Soissons Landing on the Island. For schedules and ticketing information, visit www.govisland.org. Trust-operated seasonal weekend Brooklyn ferry service will return in Spring 2023.
Round-trip ferry tickets cost $4 for adults. Governors Island ferries are always free for children 12 and under, older adults ages 65 and up, residents of NYCHA, IDNYC holders, current and former military service members, and Governors Island members. Ferries before noon on Saturdays and Sundays are free for all. There is no surcharge for bicycles or strollers at any time.
NYC Ferry’s South Brooklyn route is temporarily bypassing Governors Island through mid-February due to planned maintenance. During this time, Trust ‑operated ferries continue to run daily every half hour from the Battery Maritime Building. NYC Ferry riders traveling to Governors Island from Brooklyn can take the ferry to Wall Street/Pier 11 and transfer to Trust-operated ferries at 10 South Street. For more information on NYC Ferry, visit www.ferry.nyc.