we are clear blocks of ice

Kazzy

we are clear blocks of ice

Every year since 1989, in the most northern reaches of Sweden, 200 km above the arctic circle, artists and architects get together to build a giant hotel made exclusively of ice. Three-thousand tons of ice in the form of huge blocks which are cut out of the local Torne River are stored in a huge warehouse from March, when they are cut out of the river, until November, when construction on the hotel begins and ends, all in three weeks.

The hotel is not only loaded with room after room for guests, but it houses a soaring domed chapel that is supported by 20-foot columns. Each room is mono-chromatically luminous with its ice sculptures and ice furniture, and fiber optics are strung through the thousands of square feet in order to add to the magical feeling. It is an amazing thing to behold, even though I have only seen it on television and in photos.

But the most amazing thing of all is the disappearance of the entire structure within three months, when it finally melts back into the ground from whence it came. From the minute after its completion it starts to change, as the breath of the visitors subtly thaws walls and ceilings and art. It is a living thing, beginning its death immediately, not unlike us. Beautifully made, with detail and care, we shine and display our own art. And as we welcome our own guests we change, through their presence, until our time comes to melt back into our starting place. Gorgeous and flowing, like a clear river.