ICEHOTEL SWEDEN (JUKKASJÄRVI)

Design and build of art suites made of ice and snow for the ephemeral Icehotel in Sweden, located 200km north of the Arctic Circle. The material used in the structure of the buildings and the art suites themselves are harvested from the immediate environment. The ice is cut from the Torne River in spring, stored over the summer and fall and used by the artists in the winter. In the spring, the buildings and rooms melt and return to the river and the cycle is repeated. The iconic arched structures and snice for carving are made with snow cannons using water from the river.

 

The process as described by Icehotel:
To be able to cast the building, “snice” is produced – a mixture of snow and ice made of water from the river. The snice is sprayed onto molds, which are removed once the structure has consolidated. It’s then finally time to continue the creative process inside the meter-thick walls. The aim is to use water from the Torne River as far as possible. The rooms are constructed in a classic, catenary arch shape, which is self-supporting and incredibly strong. Room after room is filled with snow and ice in the right amounts, so when the artists arrive they can get started and immediately turn their sketches into reality. Six weeks later it’s finished – with the work of many hands the river has changed shape and been transformed into art.

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Materials: ice, snow

Year: Cat’s Cradle (La Petite Mort), 2016; Tao of Cat, 2018; High Score, 2022

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