Marble sculpture adorns Alberta's first accessible outdoor rink in Calgary
A marble sculpture that took more than two years and 1,600 hours of work to complete is now adorning Alberta's first accessible outdoor rink.
The sculpture is called Creating a Champion and features a parent and child wearing skates and hockey equipment in front of a net.
And it's big.
Sculptor Bill Harvey started with a block of Vancouver Island marble weighing close to 10,000 kilograms and the process of chiseling it into a finished product saw more than half of the stone removed.
"It was a major accomplishment," said Harvey. "I was in a big shop up in Red Deer and after doing all of the cleanup, it was sitting there in the shop all on its own and I turned around to look at it and it was like, 'Wow, I did that,' … and it's a pretty big deal."
Harvey says he got the idea to work with stone after a 1973 visit to Rome.
"Michelangelo was just so unbelievable to do what he did with hammers and chisels," he said. "So what I did is, I said to myself, 'Well, what could I do with modern power tools?'"
He began working on the sculpture in 2019 and it took upward of 1,600 hours to complete. The piece was inspired by a Canadian hockey legend.
"I thought about Wayne Gretzky as a champion hockey player and the idea came to me that well, this is not Wayne Gretzky but it's the creation of a champion," he said. "And I thought to myself, I wonder how Walter Gretzky (thought) of Wayne Gretzky."
Andy Thiessen lives in Parkdale and is the volunteer operations manager at the rink, a fancy term for what he calls "a winter gardener" who watches water freeze. Thiessen saw Harvey's sculpture and thought it would be a good addition at the facility.
"I acquired the piece and then wanted to donate it to this project that I'm so passionately involved with," said Thiessen. "Now it sits here and it's got a little sign that says it was donated by my family and you know what, 30 years from now my kids can come back and see something that dad and grandpa was a part of and yeah, it's pretty cool."
The piece has been appraised at between $15,000 and $30,000.
Josephine Cameron is 11 years old and can't wait to skate on the new ice surface with her friends. She's impressed by the new sculpture and its title, Creating a Champion.
"I love it, it's awesome, it's really inspiring because it's like a boy and his dad learning how to skate," she said.
Cameron learned from Harvey how meticulous the work was on the piece to make it look realistic, like carving the hockey net.
"On each square took like 10 to 15 minutes and there's like hundreds of them," said Cameron.
John Butterwick is another volunteer and the accessible rink project manager. He says five years ago, Parkdale's old outdoor rink had to be closed because it was in bad shape.
"One of our first community engagement meetings, there was a question asked, will the rink be accessible and we thought, 'Wow, why aren't rinks accessible, who knows who's the best person to talk to about learning about this?'" he said.
The community then began consulting with the Sledge Hockey Association and players to come up with a design.
"What's amazing about this facility is that it is completely accessible, it is built for a sledge hockey standards and requirements," said Parkdale Community Association president Amanda Affonso.
"So we've got the clear boards, the wider gates, we've got the warming area so you can transition from your wheelchair to your sled and just having the accessible bathrooms close by and just the ease of access transitioning from outside of the rink to the refit is completely flush."
The grand opening of the new $1,700,000 facility takes place Jan. 29.
Learn more about Parkdale Community Association online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
U.S. vetoes a widely supported UN resolution backing full membership for Palestine
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Cat found on Toronto Pearson airport runway 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
N.L. gardening store revives 19th century seed-packing machine
Technology from the 19th century has been brought out of retirement at a Newfoundland gardening store, as staff look for all the help they can get to fill orders during a busy season.