As far as Craig McConnell is concerned, ice has something over on other media he could sculpt in. Light transforms it, making even a simple sculpture beautiful, he said.

“I don't really have a desire to work with anything but ice,” McConnell said. He and fellow ice sculptor John Grieve were preparing to unload a partially completed work from the back of a pickup truck, at the Wiscasset Community Center on February 1.

Their sculpting demonstration that followed was part of Winterfest, held at the center, except for the ice skating portion that went on at the Wiscasset Community Playground. The celebration also included fireworks and a community supper.

For his part of the sculpture, McConnell was making a figure of Mercury; Grieve, a shark, to interact with the sea god.

“Very cool,” said community center member Jason Simpson of Wiscasset, as the two sculptors set up ice pieces under a tent.

Mercury arrived at the community center fairly formed. McConnell had already put about four hours into the figure.

The former chef freezes 300-pound blocks of ice in the garage of his Brockton, Mass., home. The sculpting for weddings and other orders for his business, “Images in Ice,” happens in an ice house about a mile away.

Whether working inside or outdoors, as he and Grieve were Saturday, their medium requires cold temperatures and winter clothing. But they don't feel the cold, they said.

“You end up sweating. This is very physical, and it takes a lot of concentration,” Grieve said.

They change gloves to suit each task, from moving the ice to using power tools.

The two men were not sure how long the sculpture they were creating outside the community center would last. Temperatures aside, just the sun's ultra-violet rays can be devastating, causing the ice to turn white and crystallize. Then it can fall apart to the touch, McConnell said.

Mild days leading up to Winterfest had left much of the town with just a skim of snow or patches of snow and ice.

But stolen ribbons and tags didn't stop Christmas from coming to Dr. Seuss' Whoville, and Wiscasset's partly brown landscape didn't stop Winterfest.

Last year's installment was canceled for lack of snow. For this year's event, the Parks & Recreation Department planned activities that would not hinge on the conditions.

The town celebrated the season, into the night, and Mother Nature, quiet for days, woke up. Just after the last embers of fireworks hit the ground, it snowed.