Current affairs figure at Nuuk’s Snow festival

NUUK, GREENLAND — The radar at Greenland’s Thule air base and the crisis in Iraq stood beside elaborate abstract snow sculptures of Arctic animals at Nuuk’s 10th international now festival last weekend.

A snow sculpture by Ivaaq Poulsen of Nuuk featured the wheels of an airplane hitting the World Trade Center in New York City. At last year’s festival, Poulsen and his friends made a big shoe of snow.

“Our figure is about Bin Laden,” Poulsen explained. “We’re showing the attack on the World Trade Center to show the world that Greenland is a peaceful place.”

Students at Nuuk’s art school made a work called “Peace in the world.”

“It’s why we are making the Thule Radar,” they said of their sculpture.

Some companies in Nuuk were using the festival as team building exercises, with workers collaborating on snow sculptures.

“It’s to strengthen co-operation between us and have fun. It’s kind of hard, but it’s an experience to work with snow sculptures,” said Nina Kørvel of Nuuk’s Rambøll Company.

When Nuummiut felt the cold, they sat inside a large igloo and snacked on coffee and hot dogs.

The festival got under way last weekend with 50 participants from Nuuk, Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

Until 2001 Canada was also represented, but due to the lack of scheduled air service between Canada and Greenland, there were no Canadian participants this year.