Ice sculpture of Nelson Mandela to raise funds

Ice Art was very keen to use the ice sculpture resources that we have, and use the unique concept to raise money... And then the idea was born... produce a unique funky Madiba ice sculpture artwork using the colours of the South African flag, then take pictures with the public next to the giant ice portrait for R10 a pop, which was donated to the Canal Walk Foundation. The photos were then uploaded to the Ice Art website so that the public could download their special image, load it onto Facebook or send their picture around the world with the great man. Hundreds of people queued for their photo to be taken and to donate their R10.

The ice sculpture of Madiba for the fundraising initiative was created using a mixture of snow, paint and special clear ice - all crafted together with a steady hand to produce an artistic rendition of the great former president.

The various layers of different colour are carved into the ice at different depths, these colours are made from mixing together snow and paint at the right temperature of 10 degrees Celcius. Gradually the portait is built up in a number of layers from the reverse side. It takes a good memory and lots of time to work with colours in reverse. The sculpture is made in three parts as it would be too heavy to carry in one piece.

Once the layers are complete the colour portrait is trapped inside the ice using a layer of white snow. Only now when the sculpture is bonded and turned around can one see the final portrait inside. The finished ice sculpture will weigh more than 350kg and will be 1m by 1.5m in fomat. Ice Art has been creating hand-carved ice sculptures for the past seven years in South Africa and this would be certainly one of the most memorable subjects displayed to the public to date.