Sand sculpture
April 23, 2009 6:23 PM   Subscribe

Here are some galleries of amazing sand sculptures. They don't have to be monochrome. Here are some tips on making your own.
posted by Joe in Australia (9 comments total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
The photographs in the "sculptures" link are especially good. Stunning detail!

Galveston, TX has a competition every June. When making sand sculptures, it helps to have very fine sand that packs tightly, like in Galveston. I grew up near Pensacola Beach, FL, where the sand is coarse quartz and I could never make decent sand castles as a kid. If you can't drive on it, you can't build much with it.
posted by zinfandel at 8:11 PM on April 23, 2009


Hey, you've reminded me of the Sandsculptures Festival here in The Hague. And it just started today.
What a coincidence.
posted by jouke at 11:16 PM on April 23, 2009


Incredible sculptures! Wow. Does anyone have an idea about how they make these with such spectacular details? Is there some spray used, something other than just sand?
posted by nickyskye at 11:41 PM on April 23, 2009


According to the third link they're made with "sand, water, and equipment". Helpful.
"Deep Sleep" from the first link is my favorite.
posted by minifigs at 1:18 AM on April 24, 2009


I think I prefer 'em monochrome, but the amount of work and detail is incredible.

Turning sand to sandstone using bacillus pasteurii as a concept for building a sheltering wall across the Sahara. Bit of a tangent as it's sort of self-sculpture, but it's pretty remarkable.
posted by carbide at 1:40 AM on April 24, 2009 [1 favorite]


looks like london based Sandalism won one of the prizes, (off the first link). I see some of their work along the South Bank in London during the summer. Flick a few coins at 'em if you're impressed.
posted by slyrabbit at 5:54 AM on April 24, 2009


If you like these (and I do), then this competition will break your heart: In Sandblasters, they have the competitors build their sand creations, and then randomly BLOW ONE UP every few hours.

Competitors can win awards for 'best recovery' so if you do get blown up, you want to be the first one and have time to rebuild. Most go for an entirely new creation the second time around.
posted by misha at 8:35 AM on April 24, 2009


Those are way cooler than the Jesus sculptures a guy used to do at Ocean City, Md when I was a kid.
posted by HumanComplex at 9:06 AM on April 24, 2009


In the contests I've entered on the northeast coast of the US, no materials not found on the beach are permitted so glues, etc. are a no-no. I suspect these sculptures are made with a sand that has a high clay content as the sand we have used, even if packed densely in forms, will not come close to permitting the kind of detail shown in these pictures. I have had many heartbreaking collapses which have destroyed hours of work. After one collapse, a lady came up to me and said "You should have seen the look on your face when it fell down." I think no court in the land would have convicted me had I belted her in the kisser.
posted by digsrus at 9:21 AM on April 24, 2009


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