Russian Cup in Snow and Ice Sculpture “Zimniy Vernissage” attracts most eminent sculptors to Perm
The 4th Russian Cup in Snow and Ice Sculpture “Zimniy Vernissage” starts on January 11 in Perm. Now the final arrangements are being made for this international event that attracts eminent sculptors from 9 countries.
It is the third time that Perm will host the Russian Cup in Snow and Ice Sculpture. It will take place in the city esplanade in the New Year ice park. The Cup was organized by the Non-profit Fund of Sculptors of Russia “Edinenie” headed by Alexey Tjutnev.
Alexey Tjutnev was quoted as saying:
The Cup’s story started in 1995 when “Snow, Ice and Flame” festival took place in Perm. After the 10th festival closed, we understood that this project had drawn to a head, and decided to organize a similar all-Russia event. The first Cup took place in the city of Salekhard, and now it is the third time that it has been held in Perm. We are sure all the participants and visitors share the excitement of the event.
This year saw a lot of anticipation and excitement about this competition that attracted the attention of a great number of famous snow and ice sculptors. As many as 40 teams from different countries worldwide applied for it, making it a hard task for the qualification commission to select the best ones. Twenty teams from 9 countries were selected to compete in the Snow Sculpture and Ice Sculpture categories, with ten teams entering each category. The participating countries include Russia, Thailand, Japan, China, Malaysia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and Argentina.
The topic of the completion is “My Small Motherland”. According to Lubov Fedorova, project director and the Honored Cultural Worker of Russia, this topic will open up a lot of opportunities for the participants to bring their ideas to life as well as to preserve the unique national features.
The Fund of Sculptors has prepared 100 cubic metres of ice and 500 cubic metres of snow. Now the wooden moulds have been set up in the city esplanade along Petropavlovskaya Street where snow is being firmed and soaked with water. Ice work pieces will be set up in January.
The Cup opens in Perm on January 11. It will start with the draw procedure followed by the participants’ march to the city esplanade where the media questions and answers session will be held. Immediately after the session the participants will proceed with making snow and ice sculptures while presenters will tell the visitors about the competition. The round table conference with the participants will take place on January 17 after the jury judges the entries and announces winners.
The 4th Open Cup of Russia in Snow and Ice Sculpture is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Culture, Youth Policy and Mass Communications of Perm Krai and the Department for Culture and Youth Policy of Perm Administration.