Boldly go where the snowman has gone before: Mesmerizing photos show the amazing snow and ice sculptures at the Sapporo Snow Festival 2024
It's a frozen fantasy.
The Sapporo Snow Festival – an annual celebration now in its 74th year – is in full swing.
The free-entry snowy spectacle, spread across three main locations in the city of Sapporo on the island of Hokkaido – Ōdōri Park, Susukino and Tsudome – is the most popular winter event in Japan, attracting two million visitors annually.
A total of 196 impressive snow and ice sculptures can be seen: from fairytale castles to galloping thoroughbred horses, and from grinning dinosaurs to manga heroes.
The centerpiece of the festival are five large-scale snow sculptures at the Ōdōri site, each between 12 (39 ft) and 15 meters (49 ft) high, built by Japan's Grand Self-Defense Force and hundreds of civilian volunteers.
The Sapporo Snow Festival – an annual celebration now in its 74th year – is in full swing. Above: Asirpa and Saichi Sugimtoto, characters from the successful manga series Golden Kamuy
Look at him snow: One of the large-scale sculptures in Odori Park shows a thoroughbred galloping to glory. Upstairs, during the day, downstairs, with light projections that animate it at night
A large-scale ice sculpture of Neuschwanstein Castle, also known as 'Swan Castle'
Powder for the people: photographer Basil Villacortes Sali represents Yuji and Gojo from the popular anime series Jujutsu Kaisen
These giant glacier carvings, which took 28 days to build, include a diorama of Asirpa and Saichi Sugimtoto, characters from the popular manga show Golden Kamuy, set in Hokkaido; Neuschwanstein Castle, also known as 'Swan Castle', the fairytale Bavarian palace; a thoroughbred galloping to glory; The old Sapporo Train Station and the Hokkaido Baseball Park.
At night, light shows are projected onto the creations, animating the white canvas to bring them to life.
The Susokino site – called 'Ice World' – features 60 ice sculptures.
It is the venue for the 50th International Snow Sculpture Competition, where teams from around the world create icy ice creations designed to reflect the spirit of their country.
The pieces are cut during the festival, allowing visitors to see these wonders transformed into glittering life.
Saying goodbye is such a wet sadness: when the sculptures melt during the festival, they are demolished
Don't be in a hurry, be happy: entrance to the festival is free. Above – a majestic pagoda in the midst of a gentle snowstorm
The Susokino location – called 'Ice World' – features 60 ice sculptures, including an eye-opening work in which fish are trapped in an ice block, floating ethereally in the air
This year, teams from South Korea, USA, Indonesia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Poland, Portland, Singapore and Thailand participated.
Their creations include icy dragons, stingrays, fairy tale characters, Komodo Island – even the concept of 'harmony'.
In addition to the competition creations, there is a startling work in which fish are trapped in an ice block, ethereally floating in the air, cute cartoon creations and large-scale sculptures made by the Ainu people, the indigenous people of Hokkaido.
The Tsudome site is a large-scale playground, where revelers can take part in snow mazes, slides and interactive ice exhibits – or make their own snowman.
The Sapporo Old Train Station by day, and below at night, with light projection bringing it to vibrant, delightful life
Un-brrrrr-deliverable: The Susokino site is the venue for the 50th International Snow Sculpture Competition (above)
A collection of mocking mini snowmen on the Tsudome site
Run for the chills: At Tsudome there are several family-friendly attractions and interactive snow shows
How are Sapporo snow and ice sculptures made?
Because there was not enough snow falling at the individual locations to build the structures, it was brought in.
Five-ton trucks delivered snow to the various locations, making six thousand trips to collect approximately 30,000 tons of white powder to create the icy phantasmagoria.
The snow must be of the purest quality: dirty snow absorbs light, making the creations melt faster. Most of it comes from neighboring parks, cemeteries and golf courses, where it lay pristine.
Above: A tyrannosaurus rex emerges, growling from the snow. Below: An altogether friendlier looking reptile
Melting madness: Some sculptures stray more towards the conceptual
To make the creations, participants use shovels, machetes, saws, chisels – and chainsaws. When it comes to a large-scale sculpture, cranes and scaffolding are used.
When a statue is finished, water is sprayed on it to freeze it in place. If it starts to melt, it will be broken down, even during the festival.
On the last evening of the festival, the snow and ice sculptures are taken down.
The 2024 Sapporo Snow Festival runs until Sunday February 11th.
Thanks to local English teacher Basil Villacortes Sali for kind permission to use his photos from the exhibition. Visit his Instagram profile here – www.instagram.com/basilvsali.