Carving out friendships through snow: Yukon exhibition draws experts and novices

'This is definitely a first, working on something of this scale, and with snow,' said Alia Shahab, who reunited with some old classmates to try their hand at snow carving.

Carvers have come from all over to participate in this year's snow carving exhibition in Whitehorse

George Maratos · CBC News · Posted: Feb 23, 2018 9:00 AM EST | Last Updated: February 23, 2018

Alan Armbruster and An Qifeng have been carving snow together for two decades. This week marks the first time they've entered the annual competition in Whitehorse. (CBC - George Maratos)

Alan Armbruster of Fairbanks, Alaska, got his start in snow carving following a bet in a bar two decades ago — and he's been creating art with snow ever since.

The snow has really helped to bond our friendship.- Alan Armbruster, Snow carver

"My friend's nephew was playing in the Stanley Cup finals, and I told him that if he won I would carve a Stanley Cup out of snow for him," said Armbruster. "New Jersey won the cup that year, and Scott Gomez got his carving."

Armbruster says since then, he's forged many friendships through snow carving, perhaps none more unusual than with his current carving teammate, An Qifeng.

The pair met in China at a competition, and now reunite to create art whenever they can. This week, they're part of a three-man team at the Sourdough Rendezvous snow carving exhibition in Whitehorse.

"The snow has really helped to bond our friendship," said Armbruster.

Tom Lewando sits atop his team's block of snow that will soon become a work of art. (George Maratos/CBC)

Armbruster and fellow teammate Tom Lewando, also from Alaska, have travelled to China to compete with Qifeng on several occasions, and Qifeng has done the same in Alaska. Qifeng actually makes the trip annually, to carve snow for a couple of months every year. It's the team's first trip to Whitehorse.

"Hearing about the snow in Whitehorse, we just had to try it out," said Lewando. "It's been great — we like it a lot."

Art school classmates reunite to carve

The Whitehorse exhibition typically draws carving teams from all over.

For former Alberta College of Art and Design classmates Michel Gignac, Eric Heitmann and Alia Shahab, the Yukon event marks both a reunion, and their first foray into making art from snow.

Former art school classmates Alia Shahab and Eric Heitmann reunited in Whitehorse this week, to try snow carving for the first time.

They graduated from art school in 2012, and Gignac now lives in Whitehorse. Heitmann and Shahab had never visited, and saw the event as a chance to see a friend and try a new form of art.

"This is definitely a first, working on something of this scale and with snow," said Shahab. "It's been really fun trying to figure out the dimensions and the volumes and the different aspects of the sculpture."

The art students credit Google, and fellow snow carvers, for advice and tips on how exactly to turn a block of snow into a piece of art. They also used their artistic background to actually build some of the tools they use for carving.

Shahab and one of the makeshift carving tools her team made. (CBC - George Maratos)

"We've got this one piece that looks like a bat with a bunch of spikes coming out of it," said Heitmann. "We carved our own handles, put them together with a couple of bolts and wingnuts, and now it just looks ready to rumble."

If the Whitehorse event goes well, the former classmates hope to carve more snow in the future and travel the world while doing so.

"It's been intense and a little bit intimidating, with everything we've had to get done," said Heitmann. "The biggest thing we've learned is to not be afraid to get close to the shape and to not be so overcautious."

The carvings will be on display for several weeks, depending on the weather.