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Amarula Elephant Ice Sculpture Wows New Year’s Eve Crowds at Kirstenbosch GardensAmarula Elephant Ice Sculpture Wows New Year’s Eve... The New Year kicked off in style with a massive elephant ice sculpture that was unveiled to a crowd of 5000 partygoers at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Dubbed Cool Ama-Ellie, the sculpture was commissioned by Amarula and produced by Ice Art’s Matt Smyth. The ice artist worked from an image, taking two days to carve...

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Looking Back at 2011Looking Back at 2011 Ice Art kicked off the events season by getting involved in a wide variety and cross section of events across a range of industries, creating ice sculptures that wowed the crowds. Some of the events over 2011 included year-end functions, weddings, brand launches and industry showcase expos. Ice Sculpture Events & Highlights Over...

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Unique Wedding Decoration IdeasUnique Wedding Decoration Ideas When it comes to wedding decoration ideas, many grooms and brides-to-be want to go beyond the traditional options in order to create the perfect setting for their special day. After all, why settle for simple when it is possible to achieve something beyond your wildest dreams? For those wanting something different, ice...

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J & B Global Party at the Castle in Cape TownJ & B Global Party at the Castle in Cape Town South Africa’s oldest building recently came to life in a sea of unique ice sculptures, décor, music and crowds for the private J&B Global party held at the Castle of Good Hope in Cape Town. The event was quite possibly the largest of its kind held at the Castle in over 300 years, turning this iconic landmark into...

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Fish Eagle Brandy - Interactive Ice Sculpture Sessions Fish Eagle Brandy - Interactive Ice Sculpture Sessions... There are few things more captivating than witness a magical ice sculpture come to life, especially in the hot climate of South Africa. Not many people can say that they have had this memorable opportunity to watch one of the top ice artists in the country perform a live ice carving, let alone the chance to learn how to...

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Amarula Elephant Ice Sculpture Wows New Year’s Eve Crowds at Kirstenbosch Gardens

Category : Amarula, Featured

Amarula Elephant Ice Sculpture 2012

The New Year kicked off in style with a massive elephant ice sculpture that was unveiled to a crowd of 5000 partygoers at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Dubbed Cool Ama-Ellie, the sculpture was commissioned by Amarula and produced by Ice Art’s Matt Smyth. The ice artist worked from an image, taking two days to carve the elephant from 16 ice blocks weighing 150kg each. Before the sculpture was transported to Kirstenbosch, it had to be dismantled into three sections. The ice sculpture was then reassembled on site by a team of eight people.

Ice Sculptures and Live Music at Kirstenbosch Gardens

The life-like ice elephant was one of the many highlights of Kirstenbosch Gardens’ New Years Eve concert, which saw revellers dance the night away to Prime Circle and other acts such as Elvis Blue. Measuring 2.6 metres, the elephant ice sculpture was still standing in the early hours of New Year’s Day – a full 12 hours after its installation, says Ice Art director James Cussen.

But this special elephant was more than just a centrepiece. Elephants hold a very special place in Amarula’s heart, and these gentle giants are also the focus of a research project that deals with elephant conservation strategies in Southern African game reserves. Over the past decade, Amarula has been funding the Amarula Elephant Research Project, managed by Prof. Rob Slotow of the KwaZulu-Natal University. This project is internationally recognised for its work to highlight the behaviour of the African elephant, attracting notable international and local researchers.

Ice Art is proud to have been part of the New Year’s Eve festivities, as well as the greater message of conservation that the Amarula elephant ice sculpture brought to public awareness.

Looking Back at 2011

Category : Featured, News & Views

Ice Art kicked off the events season by getting involved in a wide variety and cross section of events across a range of industries, creating ice sculptures that wowed the crowds. Some of the events over 2011 included year-end functions, weddings, brand launches and industry showcase expos.

Ice Sculpture Events & Highlights

Over the past year, Ice Art has participated in a number of events, allowing us to unleash our creativity through awe-inspiring ice sculptures. Some of the most notable events included the following:

  • Castle Light / SAB

Castle Light

Ice Art produced the Castle Light Snowflake Icon at the Nedbank Golf Challenge, a sculpture that took over four days to create. Having enjoyed a great relationship with Castle Light over the past year, we are proud to have been part of the ice cold message that is part of the Castle Light brand identity.

  • St Yves, Camps Bay

St Yves 2St Yves - Camps Bay

Ice Art was also present at a range of events held at St Yves over the past few months, including a live ice carving that was created for the popular beach club’s relaunch. We also created a snowfill carving that was showcased at an after-party for the Lil Wayne concert.

  • Weddings

Sushi BarWedding Ice Luge

Ice Art has also been making a buzz across the wedding industry. We were honoured to have been able to provide a special décor touch for a spectacular wedding at Pezula Golf estate in Knysna, where an eye-catching shrimp terrace and vodka ice luge was created on behalf of Weddings by Marius. We also appeared at wedding expos hosted by Celebration house and Absolute Weddings.

  • Corporate Functions

Balamory Investments

Recently we have also created live ice carvings for corporate functions, including year-end events. Some of the highlights for these events included a Sword in the Stone sculpture for Balamory Investments as well as a company logo incorporated into Table Mountain for Open Box Software.

Upcoming Ice Art Creations

One of the most exciting upcoming Ice Art creations is a carving of the Amarula Elephant that will be unveiled at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens’ New Year’s Eve celebration. This sculpture will use 1.2 tons of ice, making it as close to life-size as it gets!

We will also be presenting a 5 block carving of the classic sculpture ‘The Kiss’ by Rodin for a Durex event, along with another creation that will feature a fountain that incorporates the Durex logo.

Looking back at 2011, Ice Art is proud to have been part of so many exciting events, and we are excited to see what the New Year has to offer. On behalf of all of us at Ice Art, we wish all of our clients and ice sculpture fans a prosperous, thrilling 2012!

Bell’s Night of the Stars Springbok Ice Sculpture

Category : Bells

Ice Art recently had the chance to create a spectacular Springbok ice sculpture for the prestigious Bell’s Night of the Stars Rugby Extravaganza that was hosted at the Durban International Convention Centre (ICC).

Springbok ice Sculpture - Bells Night of the Stars

The event was held to celebrate the Chris Burger Petro Jackson Players’ Fund to kick off the Rugby World Cup in style. Over R1.1 million was raised for the victims of serious rugby injuries at the Bell’s Night of the Stars Rugby Extravaganza, and Ice Art was there to get the celebrations started with a massive Springbok ice sculpture!

For the second year running, Ice Art created a life-like two block ice carving of a Springbok. The sculpture featured two fountains from which Bells whiskey flowed. Standing at an impressive 2m tall, the sculptured weighed in at 300kg. As an eye-catching centrepiece and proud symbol of South African rugby, the sculpture was one of the events many highlights.

“The Bell’s Old Scotch Whisky Team has been involved in raising money for the Chris Burger Petro Jackson Players’ Fund for many years now and the latest Bell’s Night of the Stars was another incredible chapter in our association with them,” said Dominic Malan, marketing manager of Brandhouse Whiskeys, who went on to say, “The evening was a fantastic success and proved yet again just how passionate South Africans are about rugby and just how caring they are about those who have been injured playing the game.”

Created by Ice Art’s Matthew Smyth and the rest of the Ice Art crew, the pre-carved Springbok ice sculpture was transported to the venue in Durban and then painstakingly assembled once it had arrived at the Durban ICC.

Alan Shuman from Brandhouse said about the event, “The “Bells Night of the Stars” at the convention centre in Durban was another huge success for the Chris Burger Petro Jackson Fund and the Telethon. A tribute to the current Springbok team, past Springbok heroes, and some of the Australian rugby players and the who’s who from the rugby world and supported by the business community made this the premium fund raising event on the rugby social calendar.

The fund raises money for Rugby players who were the unfortunate victims of catastrophic or serious rugby injuries through the game of rugby in South Africa and all the funds are donated to ultimately uplift their lives and that of their families. Bells Extra Special is very proud to be associated with such a worthy cause. Ice Art’s professionalism and expertise and attention to detail is the reason why we use Ice Art continuously. The “Springbok Ice Sculpture Fountain” was a huge success and created the perfect photo opportunity on the evening while everyone enjoyed a delicious Bells Braveheart from the Fountain.

My sincere gratitude and thanks to James and especially to Mathew and Mark who were extremely accommodating and made certain adjustments and made sure that the Fountain was working 100% before leaving. I can but only give Ice Art the highest praise, who all certainly make life a pleasure when doing business with their team of ice sculpture experts, ensuring 10 Star Service.”

Practical but Unusual Uses for Ice Cubes

Category : News & Views

While ice cubes have always had a rather conventional use to keep drinks cool, there are a number of other ways that they can be used – many of which are so practical that you may be surprised. On another side of the spectrum, large ice cubes in the form of ice blocks also have a number of uses, not least including the creation of fascinating ice sculptures that turn ordinary blocks of ice into incredible works of art.

For those wanting something more practical from their ice however, here are a few unusual yet certainly helpful uses for ice cubes.

  • Remove chewing gum from hair or clothing – one of the most frustrating things is to have chewing gum stuck on an item or clothing, or even worse, in your hair. Before you panic, grab an ice cube, and rub it over the gum until it hardens. The gum will then break, allowing you to easily remove it from clothing or hair without having to resort to drastic measures.
  • Remove a splinter – whether you are a parent removing your child’s splinter, or you have gotten one in your own finger, ice cubes make the process far easier and less painful. Place an ice cube over the affected area to numb the skin, before using a needle to remove the splinter without tears.
  • Water hanging plants and other hard to reach plants – to reach those tricky hanging baskets or plants that are not easy to water, drop a few ice cubes into the pot and let the moisture absorb into the soil as the ice melts. This also prevents drips from over-watering.
  • Create an eye-catching party decoration – ice cubes can also be used to make simple ice sculptures that are excellent as party décor. Make your own by adding salted water into a mould, along with glitter, flowers and other decoration. Once the ice has frozen, turn it out onto a tray to display as a centrepiece at your party.
  • Remove dents in carpets – for those frustrating indents that are suddenly visible when furniture has been moved, ice can be placed into the dent and left to melt. Once it has melted, simply brush the carpet dent until the carpet fabric has been restored.
  • Iron out wrinkles in clothing – if you don’t have time to wash a new, wrinkled top or skirt, try placing some ice into a cloth and gently rubbing over the wrinkle before ironing. Once you have ironed, the shirt or skirt will be perfectly smooth.
  • Treat blisters and burns – while you should never use ice directly onto a blister or burn, when it is placed in a cloth and applied to the wound, ice helps to numb the pain and prevent further damage. Ice is also excellent for bruises and muscle pain as a simple DIY treatment trick.
  • Make nasty medicine easier to swallow – for children who do not like the taste of medicine, a bit of ice sucked before swallowing does wonders for numbing the taste buds. This makes it far easier for parents to deal with those tricky medicine moments, creating a much-needed help from ice cubes.

Unique Wedding Decoration Ideas

Category : Featured, Weddings

When it comes to wedding decoration ideas, many grooms and brides-to-be want to go beyond the traditional options in order to create the perfect setting for their special day. After all, why settle for simple when it is possible to achieve something beyond your wildest dreams? For those wanting something different, ice sculptures offer an eye-catching décor idea that is perfect for your wedding, from table centerpieces all the way through to unique reception focal points.

Here are a few ideas to add something creative, unique and breathtakingly elegant to your décor scheme:

Wedding centerpieces

Wedding Centerpiece

As the focal point of every table, centerpieces can be as simple or mind-blowing as you see fit. Ice offers an excellent medium for centerpieces, with many options to consider for your tables, from intricately carved replaces of the bride and groom to romantic hearts, swans and anything else you could ever imagine. Flowers can also be immortalised in your ice centerpiece, resulting in a modern twist on the classic floral centerpiece.

Oyster and snack bar

Ice Oyster Bar

Keep oysters and other snacks perfectly cool with the help of a functional yet stylish snack bar made entirely of ice. These ice sculptures add a huge deal of visual appeal, and can be designed according to your preferences. Keep them simple, or add some creativity with intricate carvings created by world-class ice artists.

Ice bar

Ice Bar

For drinks, bubbly and cocktails, an ice bar takes your reception to a whole new level. These bars are constructed by ice artists on-site or off-site, using crafted blocks of ice that are then sculpted to perfection. Guests can enjoy ice-cold drinks while they marvel over the beautifully designed bar, which is sure to be remembered as a highlight of any wedding reception.

Ice luges

Ice Shots

To add even more excitement to the proceedings, an ice luge can also be created and set up as part of the bar, or on its own. Luges act as a memorable way to serve colourful shooters and cocktails, with contrast against the clear or white ice as the liquid makes its way down the maze-like funnels of the luge. Once it reaches the end, drinks can be poured straight from these functional ice sculptures or guests can open their mouths to enjoy an ice-cold shot straight from the luge.

Live ice carving

Live Ice Sculpting

Another thrilling option to consider for wedding decoration ideas is a live ice carving that is performed during the reception. Talented ice artists will create a work of art from a simple block of ice, using a range of tools and equipment to chisel, chip and sculpt their design into fruition. Whether it’s a life-size replica of the bride and groom or a beautiful romantic design of choice, this wedding décor idea will be a hit with guests and happy couples alike.