The Northern Lights have made their first appearance for the season, the snow will soon begin to fall and the creation of Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi has already started.
1 300 blocks of ice were harvested from the Torne River this spring, and the construction team is now awaiting sub-zero temperatures and the first snowfall to be able to start construction of the winter hotel. Concurrently, the creation of six new art suites in the permanent part of Icehotel is now under way. A total of 19 art teams (link) will come to Jukkasjärvi in northern Sweden during the autumn. Together with the ice production, building team, art support and lighting teams, they will create 6 new Art – and Deluxe Suites in Icehotel 365 and 12 Art Suites, a Ceremony
First on location, to make the art suite Kodex Maximus of ice and snow, are artists Julia Gamborg Nielsen and Lotta Lampa. They are now on-site at Icehotel.
– It’s wonderful to be back at Icehotel and work with the most sustainable materials; ice and snow that melt and return to nature. In this year’s art suite, guests will enter an organic world, a potential future with transformation, balance and reflection in focus, explain artists Lotta Lampa and Julia Gamborg Nielsen.
A sauna made of ice and a frozen winter garden
Guests visiting Icehotel this autumn and winter can also look forward to entering a room filled with typographic art, or sleep in a forgotten hotdog stand made of ice and snow. One of the art suites features a frozen winter garden and, in another, a world full of toys made from ice and snow offers experiences that bring out the child in us. In the deluxe suite “Sauna”, guests are welcomed into an ice-cold sauna. If the temperature doesn’t meet expectations there, freezing cold can quickly be replaced by a hot sauna experience in a private relaxation room available for guests in all of the deluxe suites.
35 artists and a secret guest to be revealed
The 35 artists have been hand-picked by the art team, led by the hotel’s Creative Director Luca Roncoroni.
– With many years of experience in creating art from ice and snow, this year’s artists have also had a share in Icehotel’s 31-year history. Together, the artists will create a magnificent experience at Icehotel, says Luca Roncoroni, Creative Director.
New this year is that Icehotel has invited a secret guest to engage in special collaboration in the creation of one of the art suites. This collaboration will be presented in October.
Click here to see the full list of all the artists participating in creating Icehotel, as well as some sketches of the art.
On December 11th the doors will open to this year’s version of Icehotel, but guests can already sleep amid ice art, marvel at the Northern Lights, experience wilderness adventure and even watch art take form in the permanent part of Icehotel, Icehotel 365.
