Sand Sculptors From Around The World Participate In Pittsburgh Competition

OAKLAND (KDKA) -- World class sand sculptors are working at their craft this week at Schenley Plaza in Oakland.

Five pairs of professionals have a week to decide what to do with 200 tons of sand. That's 40 tons per team.

Jill Harris, president of Sandsational Sand Sculptures of Florida, makes sure the competition goes smoothly.

"They all have from eight o'clock until five o'clock, with a one hour break for lunch," she said. "They started sculpting last Saturday. They'll end Friday at three."

That's about 55 hours of packing sand. Honoring the city's bicentennial, each sculpture has a Pittsburgh theme. One team started at the very beginning.

"Actual foundation: there's the fort," says Fergus Mulvany of Ireland. "We took an element of that. It's a very dynamic, iconic image, so we said we'll use that as a starting point. Then, of course, there's the mining. And then towards the '80s, there's the technological cleanup."

Another piece is called "Master of Steel."

"We're trying to portray the steelworkers as the superheroes of all the buildings, the infrastructure, and the base, the heart of Pittsburgh," says Karen Fralich of Toronto.

Another sculpture depicts the city as a pearl, emerging from its shell.

"Inside, you can see the main panoramic of the city," explains Andrew Betkus of Lithuania. "And the pearl is under the bridges, which are very famous."

They're not just pounding sand. There's a total of $14,000 in prize money.

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Visitors to Schenley Plaza in Oakland are marveling at the artists participating in this week's "Sand City Spectacular." While the theme of each sculpture is Pittsburgh, seven of the ten artists crafting sand sculptures hail from other countries.

Katsuhiko Chaen is one of the top sand sculptors in Japan. But he was already well acquainted with his choice for a sculpture: the pop artist who made soup cans famous, Pittsburgh native Andy Warhol.

Artists from Russia and The Netherlands work together on a three-sided sculpture representing the three rivers.

"If these rivers do not connect, in this place, this would not exist, Pittsburgh," says Ilya Filimontsev of Moscow. "That's why Pittsburgh's in this place, because of the rivers."

His Dutch partner, Susanne Ruseler, says the sculpture has a feminine touch.

"We thought we make the rivers like women, represented by women," she said. "And we make the city like it's coming from them."

Organizer Michael Dongili says it reflects the melting pot that is Pittsburgh.

"When you think about the diversity that we have of nationalities right in the city here, and the cultural diversity as well that comes with all those people and those nationalities, this is a true reflection of that with everybody that we have here," he said. "Seven different nations represented. It just fits so well."