Bronx artist Lovie Pignata took the grand prize in the Feb. 3 Governors Island ice-sculpting competition with her “Smitten” design. Her piece — a pair of mittens holding hands to form a heart — will be recreated and featured in Times Square for Valentine’s Day.
The ice sculpture will be revealed by 11 a.m. on Feb. 14 in Duffy Square, coinciding with the annual Love in Times Square celebration. The sculpture will be a towering 8 feet tall and 11 feet wide, weighing approximately 14,000 pounds.
“Smitten” features careful knit details and Valentine’s-themed hearts. Pignata enjoys the humor in both the name and concept, saying she likes to have puns in her artwork titles, with “Smitten” being a play on her theme of love and mittens.
“I really loved the idea that mittens are warm, but these are made out of ice,” Pignata said. “I liked the irony of that.”
Pignata submitted her design to the Governors Island competition in November, determined from the get-go to win the grand prize of being featured in Times Square. She started by drawing and cutting out her design on paper, to scale with the actual sculpture, and even used dolls to illustrate the scale in her submission.
In late December, Pignata found out she had been selected as one of 10 contestants.
“This was huge for me and the theme was love,” Pignata said. “My name’s Lovie. I felt like it was all coming together.”
The Governors Island Ice Sculpture Show was held Feb. 3 in partnership with Times Square Arts and Friends of Governors Island. Upon arrival at the competition, Pignata was ushered to a station set with a chainsaw, carving tools and a pair of gloves.
This was Pignata’s first ice sculpture. Much of her recent work has come in the form of murals around the city. In 2023, she had murals on Morris Park Business Improvement District’s security gate as part of Uptown Grand Central’s Grandscale Mural Project and more.
The two-hour timer started and the contestants got to carving.
“Those were the fastest two hours I’ve ever spent in my whole life,” Pignata said. “It was really exhilarating.”
When time was up, Pignata turned and saw a crowd of hundreds gathered to watch the competition live. Just a half hour later, the competition’s jury announced that she had won the grand prize: a monetary prize, a trophy made of ice and the opportunity to have her work recreated and featured in Times Square.
“It was really exciting,” Pignata said. “It still is. I’m looking forward to next week.”
Pignata will get to attend the professional overnight carving of ‘Smitten’ as it’s installed in Times Square by a team of four carvers and two to four support staff.
The sculpture will accompany Love in Times Square’s weddings, surprise proposals and vow renewals, all in celebration of the holiday of love. The public can see Pignata’s design on Valentine’s Day starting at 11 a.m. and ending when it melts.
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