a leaping dolphin that gave me a little trouble, but benefitted from one of my many accidental improvements over the years đŹ
updated 10/18/23 with seo, links, title change, and some additions and word changes
accidental improvements are just as good as intentional ones
From time to time, every ice sculptor makes mistakes while carving. However, the fact that you made a mistake isnât as big a deal as how you deal with the mistake. While sculpting the dolphin shown above for a brunch, I broke the lower corner of the carving. I actually fractured the corner of the carving because I was experimenting with a different (cheap!) chainsaw thatâs apparently not at all suited for ice sculpting. It actually felt like I’d do better using the saw as a hammer, but that’s another story đŹ
Originally, the dolphinâs position was supposed to be more vertical. When a corner broke off, I was faced with the task of repairing a well-tempered piece of ice, since I was sculpting at room temp. That would have taken time that I didnât really have. I did start the repair, but after I cut the jagged surface flat, I realized that the carving was more dynamic if I used the newly cut surface as the base. After that, I just took some weight off the front of the dolphin so that it wouldnât tip over when it was set up for brunch.
Now Iâm not claiming to have made some fantastic discovery in ice sculpture design. In fact, if you look at the picture below from an older version of my ice dragon ice sculptures website, youâll notice the dolphin in a similar position. Iâve sculpted this design before, on purpose. When I was sculpting the dolphin in question, however, I had a particular pose in mind. When I broke the ice, I was able to adapt to the situation because I was willing to change the design when circumstances warranted it. In this case, I probably ended up with a better sculpture because of it.
sometimes, if you embrace mistakes, things turn out better than they would have without the mistake. Accidental improvements can spark creativity, but you have to recognize the improvement when it happens!
Youâve heard the phrase: âNecessity is the Mother of Invention.â With regard to ice sculpting, whether it’s because of a break or because thereâs only a few minutes left before a competition ends or an event begins, this phrase can become very important. If youâre having trouble with a carving and youâre under the gun, step back for a moment, take a deep breath, and try to decide if you have any other options that would work for the situation that youâre in. You MIGHT end up with a better sculpture and a very happy boss or client. Best of luck!
links and stuff
Related to the topic of this post, I really liked this short review of a book on kid’s art that talks about happy accidents and accidental improvements. They even managed to work in a da Vinci quote!
Now while I haven’t posted the dolphin design in question (yet), I have posted a few other dolphin designs on the site: a double dolphin design, my Baroque dolphin, and a dolphin and hearts. I do have at least one more dolphin ice sculpture design waiting in the wings, so I’ll try add that later. Or check the design page.
You could also find photos and info from this entry on the ice sculpting secrets Instagram account or the facebook page. You can comment there as well as below. And if it won’t LET you comment below (it probably won’t), then definitely comment on fb and/or IG. Thanks!
