Community Corner

Sandy 'Pleasure Craft' to Dock at Penfield Beach Next Weekend

Massive Sand Sculpture Highlight of Next Weekend's Activity at Penfield Beach

For Sean Fitzpatrick, creating massive and intricate sand sculptures is all about the sand.

"I think the big thing is, the type of material you're working with is always the biggest challenge," Fitzpatrick, a master sculptor and founder of Fitzy Snowman Sculpting in Saugus, Mass., said in a phone interview Sunday. "There's a lot of physics involved with sand sculpting. The sand we use is really superfine, quartz and mica sand, not silica sand."

Fitzpatrick, who will sculpt a large pleasure craft on Penfield Beach beginning Thursday for the 3rd annual Sand Sculpture Festival at Penfield Beach, is trucking in 30 tons of sand from Hudson, N.H. "It's some of the best sand in the world to carve. It's very smooth and uniform," he said.

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The Hudson, N.H. sand should arrive on Wednesday, and Fitzpatrick will begin the process of creating a pleasure craft measuring 12 feet wide by eight-to-10 feet tall on Thursday. He plans to work on the craft from around 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

"It won't be obviously a full-scale boat, but it will be a 50-to-60 percent scale. We'll build her up on the beach so when you look at the ocean, it will look like it's rising out of the ocean," he said. "Our goal is to create a pleasure craft, a boat with some sails, and really bring out the nature of Long Island Sound. The area is popular for boating; I think it will work well."

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Fitzpatrick will begin the pleasure craft by compressing sand and water into wooden forms that are stacked on top of one another, not unlike a wedding cake. He'll then work from top to bottom, removing the forms as he's ready to carve because sand is such an unstable medium. The sand will be compact and firm when forms are removed, allowing Fitzpatrick to create a lot of detail in the boat.

Many people's perception of good sand isn't always good for sand sculpting. Fitzpatrick said he sculpted sand on a beach in Hawaii, but the sand was crushed coral and volcanic ash. "When you're compacting them together, there's a lot of air in there," he said.

Fitzpatrick said he doesn't use any special tools when carving. Most of the tools, he said, can be found in a kitchen, like a teaspoon and cake frosting spatula. Clay carving tools also work well.

Once the pleasure craft is done, Fitzpatrick will spray it with a fine sheen of water and Elmer's glue to protect it from the sun and wind. He said the sculpture doesn't need to be protected from water unless there's a torrential rainstorm and that the sculpture should stay intact for a couple of weeks. "It's non-toxic and safe to use. It will form a very thin eggshell on the outside of the structure to protect it from the wind," he said.

The pleasure craft will include the logos of Gigliotti & Walsh Fine Properties of Fairfield, a real estate firm, and Subway, the popular sandwich shop that has four stores in Fairfield.

On Saturday, the Fairfield Police Athletic League will host an amateur sand sculpting contest on a sandbar at Penfield Beach from 1 to 3 p.m. The contest is free, but each team must have at least one person under the age of 18 and registration is required, beginning at 12:30 p.m.

Bob Seirup, PAL's secretary, said this year marks the 11th year of PAL's sand sculpting contest and that some of the sand sculptures have been outstanding.

Last year's sand sculptures included pyramids and the Sphinx, soda bottles and an ice cream cone. "And there's always mermaids," Seirup said.

"I'm always impressed with what the kids and parents do. They do better than I could do," Seirup said. "It's a lot of fun. It's a good event, and it's free; something for kids to do with their families."

Prizes will be awarded for Best Castle, Most Original Sculpture, Most Realistic Sculpture and Most Artistic Creation. Last year's contest drew 60 entrants and the sculptures also included alligators, castles, a turtle and a butterfly.

Fitzpatrick said Penfield Beach's sand is pretty good for sand sculpting. "I would give it a 6 rating. From a scale of one to 10, I'd give it a good 6. On the dry end, it's a little grainy. Closer to the tideline, there are smaller grains," he said.

Many of the amateur sand sculptures created at last year's Sand Sculpture Festival were impressive, Fitzpatrick said. "They do a really good job with it. The sculptures look really beautiful when they're done," he said.

Fitzpatrick said amateur sand sculptors should consider picking up some green drainage tubes for PAL's contest. "You fill wet sand from the top and they come off easily because there's no vacuum. Buckets hold sand in there," he said.

Residents also could cut the bottom off a five-gallon bucket to create forms for their sand sculptures, Fitzpatrick said.

On Friday, CancerCare and Dr. Ivan Cohen and Associates, a Fairfleld dermatologist, will offer free skin cancer screenings at Penfield Beach from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., and Yoga for Everybody in Fairfield will offer yoga classes on Saturday and Sunday mornings at 7 for $10 on the deck at the Jacky Durrell Pavilion at Penfield Beach.

Carabiners Indoor Climbing of Fairfield will have a rock climbing wall next to the Jacky Durrell Pavilion on Friday, and kids can climb to their hearts' content for a suggested donation of $5. Donations will benefit CancerCare and the Fairfield Beach Residents Association, a neighborhood group whose mission is to protect and improve the quality of life for residents who live near the beach.

Last, but not least, Subway Subman will have giveaways at the Jacky Durrell Pavilion at 11:30 a.m. Sunday and Gigliotti & Walsh Fine Properties will hold a coloring contest.

Fitzpatrick, who also sculpts snow, ice and pumpkins, said he's been sculpting sand for about 20 years and founded Fitzy Snowman Sculpting in 2000. He got his start when his daughter wanted him to create a snowman - but one that looked like Santa Claus. "One thing led to another and I got really hooked on it. I started doing sand sculptures...and developed a passion for it," he said.

Fitzpatrick said he sculpted sand on beaches in Massachusetts and Maine and crowds of people would gather around him to watch. He also got to a point, in snow sculpting, where he was borrowing snow from neighbors and tennis courts.

Sand is more difficult to work with than snow because sand is more unstable, Fitzpatrick said, describing sand sculpting as "art defying gravity."

"You have to really respect the laws of nature when you're working with sand," he said.


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