Ashkelon to host International Sand Sculpture Festival
The festival will run from August 18-23 between the hours of 10:00 and 22:00.
By ALEX WINSTONFairytale castle, one of the many sculptures on show(photo credit: SHLOMO BEN EL AND YONAH ALMOG)
The Little Mermaid, Moana, the Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and many other Disney characters are currently occupying the Bar Kochba beach in Ashkelon, to celebrate the first Ashkelon International Sand Sculpture Festival.Montserrat Cuesta Marin and Sergio Ramírez Pérez, a pair of sand sculptors, arrived from Spain to contribute to the Ashkelon International Sand Sculpture Festival. They are overseeing the completion of a sculpture of Gulliver, the protagonist from Jonathan Swift's famous novel Gulliver's Travels. Made from 380 tons of sand and standing two meters high and nine meters long, it is one of many famous literary characters at the festival.Ashkelon Mayor Tomer Glam said, "As befits a city with a sea of possibilities, I am pleased to invite all residents of Israel to come to the developing Ashkelon and enjoy with us a unique festival that combines street art, culture, unique creation and the seaside that characterize our city. We are the first to produce this kind of international festival, but I am sure that this is the beginning of a tradition that will preserve for many more years."Jackie Bachar, the producer and artistic director of the festival, wrote on the Ashkelon municipality website, "We are delighted to bring to Israel the world's finest sand sculpture artists in a week, where the general public can be impressed by the charming works they created especially for the festival and worked on for days. No cost, and a variety of activities that will take place along the promenade in Ashkelon. "The festival will run from August 18-23 between the hours of 10:00 and 22:00.
