Sparkling sunlight bounced off a cascade of ice that had coated tree branches and ivy above a Gibsons parking lot during the recent cold snap.
"Hey, look at the trees," said one passerby, pausing on the way to his car to look up and admire them for a refreshing moment. A roving photographer among the frosty growth had also been attracted to the sight and was busy taking pictures, stepping carefully over the slippery surfaces.
It's not often you stumble upon an ice display tucked away between a salon and an electronics store, and the sight was definitely worth a picture.
Was it some trick of nature? Or of art? As it happens, it's both.
Coast artist Tyler Gentry has worked with illuminated ice installations in his back yard since 2002. This year he made the show public. His initial desire was to try carving ice, but it's not cold enough here to accomplish that without refrigeration so he devised a technique for making natural sculptures by spraying water on trees, bushes and staged objects such as an artificial tulip, to create an array of icicles. During the day the sunshine makes the show sparkly and at night the ice takes on a warm glow in contrast to the cool air.
"Working in the cold awakens the senses," Gentry said. "The air smells fresh and I feel a sense of calm and creative intuition."
There is a cold snap about twice a year, he points out, with an average of three days of freezing. It's enough time to make a display, and after that, the ice becomes so thick that details can be lost. Last year, Gentry and a group of volunteers put together a public ice tree display in Roberts Creek. After a long day of work in the freezing cold, the resulting ice show lasted only three days before the weather warmed up. This art is fleeting. The Gibsons display washed away in last week's rain.
Gentry is careful not to damage the trees - last year's budded and blossomed as usual. In fact, the ice flow from the branches tends to run down to the ground along the clotheslines tied to the trees, making an icy railing that acts as a crutch supporting the weight of the branches. He plans to make a really large display next winter, maybe somewhere colder, like Whistler or a ski resort.
Gentry, a graduate of Elphinstone Secondary School, works in many mediums. His acrylics of surreal, otherworld landscapes have been displayed on the Coast over the past few years. He currently has another growing interest that requires his craftsmanship. He builds custom tiny mobile homes for alternative eco living. It's an area of home construction that has turned into a movement. Those interested can Google the tiny house movement, small homes for those who want to live simply, to see how the trend is taking shape.
The artist can be reached by e-mail at [email protected]. Photos of the ice display can be seen on Facebook at Tyler Gentry Artist and in Coast Reporter's on-line galleries at www.coastreporter.net.
