Camouflaged amongst the glistening sun and the sand lies a treasure trove of animals lying in wait. Take a glimpse and walk on the wild side…
Wrapping up their hugely popular exhibition, Sand Sculpting Australia presents: A Day at the Zoo.
On show from 16th April to 1st May, Port Noarlunga has transformed into a salty home to sand sculpted critters from all corners of the world: Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, North America and the Arctic. Capturing onlookers with their exotic aesthetics and fine attention to detail, Port Noarlunga has been thrust back into the spotlight, this time as a ‘zoo’.
Triple in size of event space since last year, ten sculptors (eight Australian and two from the Czech Republic) laboured over sixteen days to bring each sculpture to life. Much to the delight of children, lions, monkeys, koalas, zebras and pandas are amongst the many animals on show. With eyes-twinkling, parents are are later inundated with questions of ‘how does it not fall down!?’ and ‘how come this doesn’t work when I try it at the beach?!’
If you haven’t already had a chance to get down to the exhibition, what better time than school holidays! Face painting, animal mask making, sand bottles, interactive photography, sand art stations… that’s like a child’s dream right!? The sculptors and event staff have truly done a fabulous job in entertaining their spectators, most of whom are in awe of the level of talent on display.
‘We were in a different location last year, so this location’s a lot larger with a lot more sand and kids activities’ Jenna Stanley, event coordinator for Sandstorm Events told us. ‘There’s been a lot of positive feedback from it which will then hopefully evolve from there.’
270 tonnes of sand was transported from a local quarry in Adelaide for this year’s display. The apparent ‘secret’ to sand sculpting lies in how compact the sand is, undergoing a number of processes to achieve a general shape. Each sculpture is then carved from top to bottom, layer-by-layer. Once complete it is sprayed with a biodegradable sealant to repel moisture. Weather is no match for these fiery creatures!
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