Art in snow

Art in snow

By Jeanne Anderson

Kevin Coughlan of Jackson, one of the more experienced snow sculptors and the only solo artist in Snow Scapes, with his "band of bears" called the Teton Canyon Growlers.

A tiki, dragon, elephant, bears, an unwise child and other memorable figures came to life in downtown Driggs this week as several dozen artists braved sub-zero temperatures and long nights to create plenty to see in the first ever Snow Scapes: The Art of Sculpting Snow. It's all part of the first annual Great Snow Fest.

What a great community event! And in one of the first winters without all that much snow! Remember those spring-like temperatures? They threatened to wreak havoc with the whole party......but that wasn't going to ruin the fun. First, the City of Driggs, Teton County and a host of local companies helped Mother Nature by moving some 30 dumptrucks of snow for the giant snowblocks for the sculptures; then close to 50 volunteers helped stomp the snow in the frames last week -- for perspective, the smallest of these snowblocks is 216 cubic feet!

Snow Fest activities officially started Tuesday when the teams of carvers met with visiting guest artist Lee Harris. Thursday night, Teton Valley Trails and Pathways sponsored a film festival, and last night was a luge demo, hockey mini-tourney, and registration party. Just the beginning of a whole weekend of fun.....

Today and tomorrow are big days of events, with something for everyone and spread all over Teton Valley. Love horses? Catch the skijoring south of Victor. Are you a skier? The well-loved TVTAP Teton Ridge Classic took place this morning at the far north of the county. A snow plane demonstration just wrapped up in Tetonia. Want a tamer (but still fun) day of it -- try the bingo bonanza at the Driggs City Center this afternoon, or catch the ice-sculpting demos. Tomorrow morning, Teton Regional Land Trust hosts a winter wildlife ski tour while Grand Targhee hosts snow-bike demos and a snow-bike race and skijoring continues in Victor. Sunday night, the Awards Ceremony and "Snow Ball" starts at 7 at the Driggs City Center, sponsored by the Teton Arts Council and the Downtown Driggs Communication Association.

There's more, too much to repeat everything here (check out the full schedule); everything is being coordinated by the Teton Valley Foundation with another 50 or 60 "sponsors" at all levels.

But of course I'm partial to the art part. The Idaho Commission on the Arts granted the City of Driggs a "QuickFund$" grant to bring master snow sculptor Lee Harris here from Bonners Ferry to share her expertise as mentor and inspiration to the teams. She also talked to schoolkids and just about any of the hordes who came by to check out the work this week.

Judging of the snow sculptures just started downtown. Folks can vote for People's Choice all day -- they'll be on view (until they melt) in front of the Driggs Community Center. And there are two "community try-out" blocks that may start too take shape today, too. A big tip of the hat to Mary Mullaney and Ralph Mossman who organized SnowScapes and pulled in so much talent of all kinds.

What I particularly enjoyed this week is to watch the process, as the face went on the drumming Gumby and the structurally-sound ice bar became ready for entertaining -- and all those figures took shape right in front of our eyes.

I'm looking forward to seeing the finished snow sculptures this afternoon and having fun at other parts of the Snow Fest, too. A giant Teton-sized thank you to them and EVERYONE who helped Snow Fest such a winner!

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About This Blog

Michael McCoy

Editor Michael McCoy is a native Wyomingite who, through no choice of his own, moved to Iowa (“the third greatest state in the nation,” he says) when he was only a few weeks old. After high school graduation, he beelined it back to the University of Wyoming, where he earned a degree in Anthropology and the nickname of “Mac.” In addition to his Teton-area editorial duties, Mac works for the Missoula, Montana-based Adventure Cycling Association and writes freelance articles and books about the outdoors. “But that’s enough about me,” he says. “This blog is about you. I will prime the pump with an entry now and then--but ultimately, we hope it will be our readers, both locals and out-of-staters, who keep the streams of conversation flowing.”

Contributing blogger Susan Traylor Lykes was born and raised in the Denver area, a third-generation Coloradan. She spent much of her childhood in the mountains, and took up fly fishing at the tender age of ten, wielding her grandfather’s old bamboo rod and Pflueger reel. After graduating from the University of Vermont, Susan earned a master's degree in Town Planning from the University of Montana. For the past decade, she has focused on nonprofit land conservation and land use, serving on the boards of the Land Trust Alliance, the Teton Regional Land Trust, and the Orton Family Foundation.
Susan and her husband, Mayo, call both sides of the Tetons home. They are enthusiastic travelers and outdoorsmen — hiking, skiing, fly fishing, and bird hunting.

Contributing blogger Jeanne Anderson is a Cheyenne native and graduate of the University of Wyoming who has spent the last 25 years as a writer, PR consultant, columnist, and editor. Her passions include hiking, cooking reading, traveling, community, and creativity (she’s in her third term on the Idaho Commission on the Arts). She credits her broad practical streak to her parents, who started the first travel agency in the Cowboy State—from them she learned “every bathroom in the world is down the hall and to the left.” Jeanne and her husband Peter started Dark Horse Books in Driggs in 1995; their two-year experiment lasted 14 years. Now out from behind the bookstore counter, she’s looking forward to many new adventures.