Dutch masters triumph in ice sculpting competition
The London Ice Sculpting Festival drew to a close in Canary Wharf with the Netherlands crowned as champions for the second year running.
Teams from five countries spent two days creating elaborate works of art from blocks of ice and it was the Dutch entry, entitled Cool Trading, which was judged to be the most impressive.
The sculpture, designed to reflect the towers and trade going on in Canary Wharf with carved figures supporting solid circles of ice, was praised by all the judges.
The Dutch, who won last year's inaugural event at the Natural History Museum, were delighted to retain their crown following the judging on Saturday afternoon with their elaborate effort.
Team member Marjon Katerberg said: "We already felt like winners as soon as we finished because we had so many nice comments from the crowd.
"It's really nice to surprise the spectators and be able to create a magical environment for them, so we feel like double winners.
The event proved a great success for Canary Wharf, despite the inclement weather, with plenty of people drawn to Canada Square to view the works.
Lucie Moore, arts and events manager at Canary Wharf Group, said: "Canada Square was buzzing for the two days over the festival and we were really pleased both with the quality of the sculpture produced and the response from the public.
"We were confident the ice sculpting festival would be a big draw, and we are delighted this has proved to be the case."
Event organiser Carol Cordrey of Artalone is already planning next year's festival, which she hopes to bring back to Canary Wharf.
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This was great fun on Saturday, nice to see the Dutch entry winning, you often think of ice sculpture of having to be huge blocks of ice but the intricate nature of their design must have helped secure them the competition.
Glad it hear it may return to The Wharf next year - though perhaps weather wise a tented area might be a good idea!