Tag Archives: Imperial Beach

Amusing Monday: Amazing sand sculptures are but brief creations

Creativity, humanity and whimsy seem to be abundant qualities among the sand sculptors producing unique works of art at various competitions across the United States this year.

“Dance of the Undefined,” first place in the Hampton Beach Sand Sculpting Competition. Artist: Mélineige Beauregard, Montreal, Quebec. // Photo: Hampton Beach Facebook page

In June, the Hampton Beach Sand Sculpting Competition in New Hampshire celebrated its 17th anniversary by attracting more than a dozen professional artists, including at least five from Canada.

This year’s winner at Hampton Beach was Mélineige Beauregard from Montreal, Quebec. Her work in sand, titled “Dance of the Undefined,” shows a woman from the waist up with honeycomb arms stretched above her head. Mélineige explained that the piece represents how people are constantly changing in some ways while staying the same in others.

She considers art as a kind of spiritual experience, according her to bio on the Hampton Beach website.

“When my hands touch the material, when my heart opens to give life, when my head is illuminated by light, I become the co-creator of the universe,” she was quoted as saying. “An artist is one who spiritualizes matter. For me, art is a means of communication, a way to transmit the energy of life, to affirm its vastness and its beauty.”

Mélineige has won more than 30 individual awards in sand sculpting. In 2004, she teamed up with her father, renowned sculptor Guy Beauregard, to win the World Championship doubles competition. Last year, she was the winner at the Revere Beach International Sand Sculpting Festival in Massachusetts. See the article by Liz Vanderau in Boston University Today. A slideshow of the Hampton Beach sculptures was posted on YouTube by Ammoguy5. Winners were listed on the Hampton Beach website with photos on the Hampton Beach Facebook page.

“Soul Evolution,” first place in the Revere Beach International Sand Sculpting Frestival. Artist: Pavel Mylnikov, Moscow, Russia.
Photo: Revere Beach Facebook page

This year’s winner at the Revere Beach competition, July 21-23, was Pavel Mylnikov of Moscow, Russia. His sculpture, titled “Soul Evolution,” is an intricately carved piece with two masculine angels on a rocky outcropping. Artist-reporters Dan Doubleday and Meredith Corson-Doubleday of RevereTV do a nice job of explaining their craft in a series of videos. Below, I’ve linked to two videos focused on four sculptures in this year’s competition — including entries by Pavel and Mélineige:

The festivals at Hampton Beach and Revere Beach are listed among the top 10 sand-sculpting competitions in the United States, according to Coastal Living magazine. Also making the list is the SandSations Sandcastle Competition in Long Beach, Wash. (See Facebook for some random photos and a list of winners.)

Another great sand-sculpting festival was held this year on July 14 and 15 at Imperial Beach, California. NBC 7, San Diego put together a nice video of the top winners.

“Neptune’s Organ,” first place in the 2016 Virginia Beach International Sand Sculpting Championship. Artists: Meredith Corson Doubleday and Dan Doubleday, Florida.
Photo: Virginia Beach website

Still to come this year is the International Sand Sculpting Championship, Sept. 30 to Oct. 8 in Virginia Beach, Va. The event is part of the Virginia Beach Neptune Festival. More than 30 of the world’s top sculptors are scheduled to compete along with separate competitions for amateur sculptors.

Last year’s first-place winner in Virginia Beach was Mélineige Beauregard, mentioned above. The first-place in team competition was won by Meredith Corson Doubleday and Dan Doubleday, mentioned above as artist-reporters in the Revere Beach competition. Their sculpture, Neptune’s Organ, also took the Neptune’s Choice, Sculptors’ Choice and People’s Choice awards in the team division.

Winners from 2016 contest in Virgina Beach can be seen on the festival’s winners page.

After enjoying dozens of photos showing amazing sculptures, I can’t help but think about the fragility and temporary nature of these artworks. For all their beauty and intricacy, as well as the thoughts and emotions they inspire, these sculptures soon disappear, and the artists are left to prepare for their next fleeting creation.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Amusing Monday: Surf dogs flip over wild waves in Southern California

The surf was running wild at this year’s Surf City Surf Dog competition at Huntington Beach, Calif., where the boards were flipping and the dogs were flying.

The dogs and their owners were more nervous than normal this year during the three-day event that raises money for nonprofit rescue groups. Crowds turned out in large numbers for the finals, which took place a week ago yesterday.

“It’s a crackup watching the dogs,” spectator Tom Baker told Laylan Connelly, a reporter for the Orange County Register. “The people think the dogs are enjoying it, but I’m not so sure the dogs are enjoying it today. The surf was heavy.”

Lifeguards were on hand to help with any problems, and they advised dog owners when it was safe to go out. The contest had 68 dog entries, and many of them were longtime competitors in the sport. As I watched the first video on this page, I was hoping that the owners knew their dogs and their abilities, along with their own abilities. No injuries were reported, and the images came out more spectacular than ever.

In some ways, the still images are more thrilling than the videos. See this great collection of photos posted by the London Daily Mail.

Here is a highlights video by Mike Lukas and Jerome Mel on the Surf City Surf Dog YouTube channel.

The waves were calmer in July at the annual Unleashed by Petco Surf Dog Competition at Imperial Beach, Calif. The second video on this page is a personal video posted by a couple on Tower magazine.

Another take on the Imperial Beach event is offered on YouTube by Richard Mellinger.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Amusing Monday: See Spot; See Spot splash

Through the years, I’ve featured some surfing dogs in this “Amusing Monday” feature. While dogs are still surfing strong in various contests each year, I thought it would be nice to see some other doggy feats.

The first video player on this page is the Diving Dog competition at this year’s Western Regionals for the Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge in Huntington Beach, Calif. The second video is the Fetch It Diving competition at the same event, which occurred on May 30 and 31.

The Incredible Dog Challenge, now in its 17th year, includes a slalom course for “pole weaving,” an agility course for large and small dogs and a freestyle flying disc event, in addition to diving and fetching. A good recap of the event is shown in the third video at the bottom of this page.

I suggest taking a closer look at some of these speeding-bullet dogs, shown in videos of the winning events. (Scroll down and click on “Western Regionals” for more options.) I understand that King TV Channel 5 will air events from the Western Regionals this Sunday at 10 a.m.

Winners from the Eastern Regionals, held in Atlanta in April, and winners from the Western Regionals will go on the compete at the National Championlship in September in St. Louis.

We can’t forget about the surf dogs. The Unleashed by Petco Surf Dog Competition was held July 13 in Imperial Beach, Calif. The page includes pictures of the winners. One of the better videos from that competition was put together by International Business Times of London.

Purina compiled some video clips to show surf dogs riding the waves at the Huntington Beach competition. Another good dog surfing video was offered by SoCal magazine.

Finally, for some high-resolution images of dogs in the surf, check out the slide show put together by The Telegraph of London with pictures by Joe Kalamar of AFP and Lucy Nicholson of Reuters.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post