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An ice day for creative carving
SALEM — The temperature was hovering just above the freezing point as Ron White took a break.
The Akron artist was carving a block of ice into the shape of a saber-toothed tiger dating to the Ice Age.
Like the big cat, “I love the cold,” White said Thursday.
He and others were carving blocks of ice outside St. Paul Church, 935 E. State St.
The event Thursday was part of the First Night Salem celebration.
But the coming year of 2010 is the year of the tiger in Asian calenders, which is a sign of nobility, White said.
Yoga and other Asiatic beliefs also affected his choice because they can lead to renewal and new creativity in the new year.
Mitch Lynch of Salem was working on his block of ice just a few feet from White.
Lynch said it has been 18 years since he last carved a block of ice.
And what a block. Lynch said each one weighs 300 pounds and measures 42 inches tall by 21 inches wide by 10 inches thick.
He learned his ice-carving skills at the Park Plaza in Boston.
Lynch said he was trying a new design that would show the wings of an eagle on both sides of the block. That would require proper balance, he explained.
Lynch was using older tools that included a small chainhosaw and a hand chisel.
“You do need practice to get it right, to do a design without breaking it,” he said.
John Froman, a chef from Canton, was working on a design that showed an hourglass.
He said he had learned how to carve ice as part of his work and had also carved ice for other festivals.
He added that companies now make special electrical cutting tools that can be used to quickly carve ice.
wilkinson@vindy.com