Sanding Ovations 2015 | Learn Travel Art

Mackenzie Patel

Hello World Travelers! Another year has seamlessly elapsed into the white-washed fabric of my local beach, nothing changing except new high rise apartments and a wooden boardwalk replacing the crumbled concrete one. The sky hasn’t been dulled by commerciality or erosion, only by empty cans of Bud Light and Publix grocery bags dancing along the brilliantly white sand like tumbleweeds. Sanding Ovations, an exhibition of premier sand sculptures, again graced the grainy surface with mammoth-sized artwork comprised only of sand and glue. Although the tragedy of wind and rain pounded the sculptures more heavily than a complete anthology of Shakespeare works, they were still a delight to behold, especially in the midst of a sinking sun.

On The Pier by Illya Filimontsev

Now in its 7th year, this sculpting competition features artists from Florida, Belgium, Washington State, Canada, Russia, and Italy. As a testament to the growing fame of this local art show, international artists flocked to this tiny beach town, eclipsing the domestic sculptors tenfold. The themes from previous years have included human relationships/communication and the morbid cycle of life, but the overarching motif for this year completely mystified me. Women’s rights? Embracing inner sexuality? To be honest, I enjoyed the sculptures of the previous two years better, mostly because the craftsmanship, skill, and unifying theme were more apparent. It was impossible to relate to a massively pregnant woman baring her chest to the crashing waves of salt behind her, let alone male genitalia inscribed with the words of Confucius. The subject matter chipped away at the artistic talent, transforming something that could pleasantly beautiful into an inappropriate blob filled with esoteric meanings. That being said, I genuinely enjoyed the tamer, homely pieces that conjured up memories of sand sculptures in years past.

Signature by Dan Belcher

My two favorite works were undoubtedly On The Pier by Illya Filimontsev and Signature by Dan Belcher. On The Pier was the epitome of Russian simplicity and wholeness; the little boy looking dreamingly off into an unknown distance could’ve been Levin from Anna Karenina or one of his simple-minded peasants. Signature featured the devil of ink himself, the quill gliding glibly throughout his fingers as the calligraphy poured forth. Being a calligrapher myself, I naturally gravitated towards this giant of life, this 3D representation of the ink that seems so fluid and alive after it leaves my fingertips. The sand sculptures receive separate awards based on a public and panel vote, although the work that won first place (Pan and Syrinx) was rather brutish and weathered. The sculptures will be on display through January 2^nd or until the pesky forces of wind and rain pound their destruction into the loose grains.