ELY – Dozens of activities are held during the annual Ely Winter Festival, and the snow carvings created this week in Whiteside Park define the outdoor spirit celebrated in the North Country.

Chris Koivisto, an art instructor at Vermilion Community College, has been carving snow creations for about a decade. He conducted a snow-carving training day Saturday at the International Wolf Center. He has a master’s degree in sculpture and works mainly in bronze casting, along with ceramics and pottery.

The Winter Festival’s amateur snow carving contest began earlier this week with judging taking place in the park on Sunday at 10 a.m.

The professional symposium, featuring dozens of artists from around the world, started on Thursday and concludes this weekend.

Koivisto introduced the beginning carvers to the process of making art with snow. When the day was done, they produced two sculptures that pay tribute to two of the many ambassador wolves that have called the Wolf Center their home, Shadow and Malik.

Students started by thinking about the theme and looking at photographs of various poses and postures of the wolves. “The first thing we have to do is figure out what to carve,” he said. “You have to have a plan.”

The most common and iconic wolf pose is of the animal howling. And for snow carving, it is also a low-risk pose. Students also observed the occupants of the Wolf Center and sketched the animals in various poses. They also had the opportunity to make clay models of their subject.

“We are trying to accentuate and exaggerate texture,” Koivisto said. “We are working with something that is all white and washed out in the light. You will not see the form unless there is a shadow and contrast and texture.”

The good snow carvings are actually an abstract and simplified version of the subject.

The carving process starts with a block of snow made by filling a four-sided form that is then removed to reveal the block “What we are trying to do is carve away the snow that is not part of the subject,” he said. “There are carvers and there are modelers. One process is adding material to the subject and the other process is reduction or taking away what is not wanted. It is rare to find an artists who carves and models.”

Having a three-dimensional model helps a carving team to “stay on the same page” as the work progresses.

Determining the orientation of the subject, in concert with the abstract interpretation is the next step in the process.

“Think about which way the subject will be presented,” he said. “In the park, I don’t have my sculpture face the street for those driving by. Rather, I point it toward the light. I think about where the light is coming from, particularly at night.”

The snow carvings in Whiteside Park are illuminated with spotlights during the Winter Festival celebration to add that shadow and contrast illumination for those on foot exploring the numerous snow creations.

“I carve for those people who are going to get out of their car and take the time to walk through the park,” he said.

Koivisto tries to make the large sculptures inviting for children to explore and crawl through, if possible. “And as people get closer, they can see the detail and little surprises every artist adds to the piece,” he said.

“Snow is very strong,” he said. “You can stack it, carve holes through it, and have overhangs. Don’t be afraid to work with it and undercut it.”

The amateur-sized blocks in the park this week are four-feet square. The larger, professional blocks measure 12-feet or even 16-feet square. “You try to maximize the block. Contrast and scale are what are most important. Make it large. Make it impressive.”

The ideal temperature to work with snow carving is between zero and 15 degrees, Koivisto said. “As you move it, it creates friction and warms up a little bit. Let it sit for an hour or so and it freezes up again. Colder temperatures cause the snow to behave like sugar. It never warms up enough to bond together.”

Sunshine can also work against the snow carver as the snow will warm and melt unevenly.

A variety of tools and household items can be used in snow carving. Koivisto’s favorite tool is a curry comb, generally used for horse grooming. “This is probably the most popular for all snow carvers and it can be used for a variety of situations as one works through their carving,” he said.

Rope, lengths of chain, a variety saws, and several types of shovels, scrapers and many homemade tools fill his sled. “They all can be used. You will figure out what you like and what will work as you get into the snow block.”

Larger blocks of snow, carefully cut, can possibly be used again. He demonstrated the scraping and shaping and detailing used to bring out the shapes and forms.

“You will have some ‘oops’ moments, but the important thing is to have fun creating something with your own hands,” he said.

Several dozen snow artists can be seen crawling over and under the blocks of snow this weekend as they coax their art out of the frozen matter. Some artists visit Ely just to participate in the symposium.

“This is not a contest,” Koivisto stressed. “By nature, artists are very competitive but we try to keep the camaraderie and enjoyment in what we are doing,” he said. “We’re not here to get a prize. If someone asks if I won first place I always say, ‘Of course,’ and so does every other artist here.”