Cold carved art
Caroline Wolfe Papocchia Monday, December 21, 2009 at 11:24AM At a recent bridal event, a colleague and I were drawn to a large bar offering electric blue cocktails. The cocktails were not nearly as interesting as the bar, however, which had been carved from a solid block of ice. Beautifully detailed with a linear pattern and hollowed-out sections that perfectly accommodated the bottles, the ice bar created a dazzling, irresistible display. Lucky for us, the creator of the bar was standing nearby to tell us all about it: Shintaro Okamoto of Okamoto Studio.
Ice sculpture has long been popular in the events world - appropriate not only because it's glitzy surface reflects and refracts party lighting in a way that no other material can, but also because of its ephemeral nature. At the end of the night, the lights come on, the candles are blown out, and the ice melts away. Okamoto Studio does particularly beautiful ice work, and has created hundreds of custom pieces for private, corporate, and public events.
Okamoto is a family company run by Shintaro's father Takeo, an internationally renowned ice sculptor. Shortly after seeing Shintaro at the bridal event, I caught him again at a wedding installing a sleek caviar bar in the cocktail area. Takeo and Shintaro also appeared on a recent episode of Iron Chef America, in which Takeo carved a cold smoker out of ice for Chef Morimoto. After seeing all of that impressive work, I realized it was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg (wink). I could not help but ask Shintaro if he would share some of their portfolio with us, and he graciously obliged. Check it out and be dazzled! Each piece is more incredible than the last.
Reader Comments (4)
Great ice bar!
I realise they keep the bar area freezing, but when people are e.g. leaning over the bar etc, how to you keep it from weakening in certain spots?
These ice sculptures are amazing, so much attention to detail. However I wonder how long they would last in a warm tropical climate like Queensland?