Michigan Man Builds Great White Snow Shark in Front Yard
OutdoorHub Reporters 02.20.14
One man in Grand Rapids Township, Michigan is generating considerable interest over what is sitting on his lawn. Running the length of Stephen Garcia’s home is a giant great white shark made entirely out of snow. The sculpture is a testament to this year’s unusually cold and snow-filled winter. Garcia told MLive.com that the large amount of snow that was dumped in the Midwest prompted him to build the shark.
“This year there was so much snow, it made it really easier […] I had decided I needed my youth back. I went out and played in the snow,” he said.
Garcia is an amateur snow sculptor originally from California, although he stopped creating his signature snow art five years ago. The Grand Rapids man pointed to the lack of snow and motivation as key factors. Garcia said that it is hard work, but he enjoys creating something for people to stop and look at.
“Mostly just to see people laughing and liking it,” he tells WZZM. “I like to see people get excited by it.”
Hard work is a good way to describe it; Garcia estimated that he spent up to 100 hours building the shark over a period of a month. He would initially plow the snow into a pile and spray it with water. The artist would then mold the resulting slush with gloves into the general shape of a shark, after which he applied cuts with a pickaxe. The final product was coated with another layer of ice and spray painted for color.
Warming weather might mean an early demise of the shark, but Garcia stated that he will continue to work with the piece as long as there is snow. Three brothers in Minnesota also built a snow shark earlier this year, with that creation measuring a reported height of 16 feet.
You can see a video of Garcia’s snow shark below:
