Marble Sculpture Pays Tribute to Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games

In 2008, Michelle and I lived and worked in Pietrasanta, Italy for the month of September. Before returning to Vancouver, we made arrangements to buy Carrara marble for several stone sculptors here in BC. We shipped the blocks back in a  container, and sold it to them. But one of the sculptors decided she did not want to claim all she had spoken for after the fact. Her financial situation had changed from the time of ordering and she could only afford a portion of the block she had ordered. So I had to split a portion from her block, which was a wedge shape.

The resulting 200 pound shard was knife sharp at one end and fat at the other and I saw a flame of fire  hidden there. The edges at the pointy end were jagged and that led my eye to try to make them smooth and undulating instead. I carried the theme down the block and then  rounded the bottom to return the viewers eye back up.

Once I completed it, I thought it would be prudent to honour the then upcoming Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and title it “Ice Flame”. A flickering flame frozen in winter white marble.

This sculpture now resides high above the West Vancouver seawall in a highrise home, with the backdrop of English Bay.