I have a valuable lesson to share. Ice is “see through”! I expect you thought that was “transparently” obvious, didn’t you? I simply found it quite difficult to obtain effective photographs of ice sculptures, out in the street. Excuses over, I did thoroughly enjoy myself trying, at York’s Festival of Angels.
An innocent bystander peeps through the angel wings
The city of York was as festive as anywhere I’ve ever been at Christmas time, and the Festival of Angels added its own charming dimension. Local businesses sponsor the ice sculptures, most of which are traditional Christmas images of angels and snowflakes. The large handsome slug produced an exclamation or two, however. The sponsor? A certain restaurant chain that accompanies its food with “green stuff”.
A slippery slug!
Mr. Slug illustrates the fact that I should have waited a while to let the frosting on the ice sculptures melt a little. I’ll know better next time but I was keen to see them all before too big a crowd gathered.
A rather frosty angel
Rudolph was almost defrosted
And the penguin was halfway there!
But the angel won, hands down, quite rightly
The crowd were mostly in good spirits as they wove in and out of the narrow streets. The presence of an “Ice Bar”, selling delectables such as Baileys in a frozen chocolate cup, undoubtedly helped. Mulled wine flowed sweetly too. And there was always Earl Grey in the tea shop.
It speaks for itself
Naturally Santa was there
And an Ice King, who must have had chilly nether regions
Even the barrel organ was feeling festive
Never tell me the British don’t have a sense of humour
York’s a good looking city, and there’s always something to see. I was also checking out Vintage shops, and in passing couldn’t resist a few more shots.
A former cinema, turned furniture store!
The Merchants Hall is quite special
St. Martin’s Church makes a lovely backdrop
I would have liked a few more ice sculpture photographs, but they do say “life is for learning”, don’t they?
Ice Christmas trees?
An ice Charter of York
An ice polar bear
And finally, a snowflake
My apologies for not doing full justice to the amount of work that must have gone into these incredible pieces of artwork. I hope you managed to gain just a flavour of the event, and my thanks to York for being gracious hostess to the Festival of Angels.
restlessjo 
Very festive! I love the snowflake 🙂
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I try to experience a different Christmas festival each year, and it was York’s turn this year. Thanks, Kate.
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You did a great job with with these pictures Jo, I love those wings!
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Thanks, Marcia. Sending a little Christmas cheer your way!
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Love all those sculptures and York is such a beautiful city!
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It is, Chica. The river was still dangerously high. It must be heartbreaking to live beside it.
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Lovely sculptures. I love the second angel and the snowflake. Pity they probably don´t last that long…
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Wonderfully seasonal, aren’t they, Sami? I know- so much effort for a day’s pleasure! There was a lot of fundraising for charity going on too, and I think that’s the point.
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Like all the others who have commented, I found this post very enjoyable! I have never seen ice statues, they must be quite exquisite.
Even though you were a bit disappointed with the photos, you have brought a lot of pleasure to your readers, and you got to enjoy the atmosphere on the day. Next year, perhaps you will be able to get the sculptures at a different time. In the meantime, I really liked them all!
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I’m glad you liked them, Madoqua. York is a lovely city, and choc full of atmosphere, especially at Christmas.
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fantastic jo, it seems miraculous to me …. living in a non-frozen place … thanks for showing us all these gorgeous sculptures 🙂
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Oh to live in a non-frozen place, Christine! But you’re right- they are amazing.
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What a lovely festival. Your photos are a visual treat.
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Thanks, Suzanne. So many nice Christmas festivals about this year!
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Would look good in a gin and tonic!
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Indeed! I’m more of a vodka person, but each to his own.
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These pictures are fantastic, Jo! I love the Ice Angel 😀
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Adorable, isn’t she? Glad you liked them, Dianne.
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A fun fair rather than an ice-mare. I loved the little kneeling angel the best. Ooooh, Baileys in chocolate, YUM!
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Yes, it was, Viv, but the title appealed to the drama queen in me. I was severely tempted!
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amazing
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I have NO idea how they can do this! I can just about make Christmas tree shaped ice cubes.
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Beautiful JO!!!
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Glad to bring a little joy, Len.
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Great way to slip into a festive mood, Jo. Thank you for a delightful viewing – especially since it comes to me while my fire crackles and throws heat in my cosy wee home.
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It was the mildest day we’ve had for ages, which made the viewing rather more pleasant.
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You did a wonderful job photographing the ice sculptures. I find it hard to do.
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
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Thanks, Francine. I did enjoy trying, but was a bit disappointed with the results. Beautiful place though.
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How lovely Jo – my favourites are the angel at the top and the snowflake, so pretty.
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Thanks, Suze. I need to start getting a bit more technical with my photography and taking time, but the atmosphere was lovely. Should be able to bottle it!
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Great shots of the Ice Scultures! – Very Wintery Shot!!
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Thank you! Your stuff looks pretty cool too, Stephen.
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So impressive! :):X
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Thank you! I wasn’t sure what to expect but they were lovely.
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Indeed! I like it so much! 🙂
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Lovely! Particularly like the angels wings at the top. 🙂
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That’s my favourite shot too. There was a stunning angel but she wasn’t “defrosted” enough to show all the detail, sadly. Many thanks.
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I think your photographs are excellent 🙂
I’ve never tried photographing ice sculptures, but can imagine its quite difficult, especially amongst streets ful of people.
And thank you for a tour around one of my favourite cities.
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Thanks, Vicky. I’ll know better another time, but it really was quite hard to do them justice. I need more patience!
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Lovely and how festive! We have a big ice sculpture show in February but I love the idea of having one around the holidays.
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It takes place in the most historic part of York, and you have chestnut sellers, carollers, and generates a lovely atmosphere, despite all the shopping.
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Sounds absolutely wonderful Jo!
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