31 March 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

International Sand Sculpture Festival Opens with the Theme “The Lost City of Atlantis”

The 16th edition of the International Sand Sculpture Festival (SANDLAND) has begun in Turkey’s Mediterranean resort city of Antalya. Every year, the festival attracts tourists with mesmerizing sand sculptures. This year’s theme is “The Lost City of Atlantis,” and it will begin in the middle of May.

The International Sand Sculpture Festival in Antalya is one of the world’s most prestigious sand sculpture activities. Every year, hundreds of huge, sparkling sand sculptures prepared around various themes, such as “World Wonders and Mythology” and “Sea Legends,” are displayed at Lara Beach, drawing many local and international tourists.

Sand sculpting is a form of ephemeral (temporary) art that has gradually grown in popularity around the world in recent years. Sand sculpting practices, which fall under the umbrella of alternative arts, use only sand and water. Sand sculptors work alone or in groups of two to three individuals, taking into account the size of the sculpture to be made.

As a result, impressive works of the art weighing hundreds of tons and measuring several meters in height and length are made using only water and sand. The art of sand sculpture adopts the philosophy that nothing is permanent and everything will disappear one day. These wonderful works are demolished after a short period of the exhibition.

sand sculptor
This year’s theme is “The Lost City of Atlantis,” and it will begin in the middle of May.

Festival director Cem Karaca told Anadolu Agency (AA) that their festival is one of the largest sand sculpture events in the world with the high number of sculptures it hosts and the amount of sand used in these works. Noting the festival is open throughout the year, Karaca continued: “The pandemic has affected social life, especially culture and arts events. While many sand festivals were canceled around the world, we will continue our event under strict COVID-19 measures.”

sand sculptor festival

The festival director also provided information about the 16th edition of the festival: “While preserving some of our sculptures, especially an imitation of the Cheops Pyramid, which we have applied to be included in the Guinness World Records, we will also present our new sculptures with the theme of Atlantis to our visitors. With our new sculptures, we will take our visitors on a journey through the mysterious world of the city of Atlantis. We hope that the imaginative, fantastic sculptures will attract visitors of all ages. Our sculptors started their work in the area as of April 19. We will also do repair work on our sculptures that we have not destroyed in our area. As every year, we want to create a different experience at night with lighting and music suitable for the atmosphere.”

Bulgarian sand sculptor professor Ani Zlateva also stated that she has participated in many sand sculpture events around the world and that many activities have been held in this field in recent years. Explaining that sand provides the opportunity to make large sculptures in a short time, Zlateva emphasized that their sculptures will be destroyed after a while. Noting that this situation does not upset her as an artist, “The understanding of sand sculpture is based on the fact that everything will disappear one day. I am immortalizing my work in the digital environment by photographing it with my phone.”

Related Articles

Sorcery in Australian Cloggs Cave may be World’s Oldest Known Culturally Transmitted Ritual

1 July 2024

1 July 2024

Two sticks found in a cave in Australia show signs of processing that perfectly match Aboriginal sorcery and curse-making practices...

Stonehenge could be a solar calendar, according to a new study

2 March 2022

2 March 2022

A new study posits that the Stonehenge circles served as a calendar that tracks the solar year of 365.25 days,...

A Rare Bilingual Inscription Discovered in Saudi Arabia’s Tabuk Province

28 June 2024

28 June 2024

Saudi Arabia’s Heritage Commission announced the discovery of a rare bilingual inscription in the village of Alqan in the Tabuk...

Archaeologists Found Evidence of a Lost Temple in Chorazin Linked to Jesus’ Healing Miracles

12 August 2024

12 August 2024

Recent archaeological excavations in Israel may have unearthed the remains of a long-lost temple, believed to be the very site...

The first Bull Geoglyph discovered in central Asia

29 September 2021

29 September 2021

Archaeologists from the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of History of Material Culture (IIMK RAS) and LLC Krasnoyarsk Geoarchaeology discovered...

A new study provides the earliest evidence of rice harvesting, dating to as early as 10,000 years ago

8 December 2022

8 December 2022

A new study of stone tools from southern China reveals the earliest evidence of rice harvesting, dating back 10,000 years....

People may have been cooking curries in South-East Asia for at least 2000 years

22 July 2023

22 July 2023

Archaeologists have found remnants of eight spices on a sandstone slab from an archaeological site in Vietnam, showing the early...

Archaeologists opened an untouched Etruscan tomb

31 October 2023

31 October 2023

In Vulci Archaeological Park, central Italy, a 2,600-year-old intact double-chambered Etruscan tomb that was discovered in April and had remained...

Copious Copper Supplies Made Cyprus a Trading Center in the Bronze Age

23 March 2023

23 March 2023

Cyprus was a surprisingly busy trading hub during the early period of international trade in the Mediterranean region. Its awe-inspiring...

Ancient objects found in Jerusalem could be hand grenades used 1000 years ago, New study says

27 April 2022

27 April 2022

New analysis into the residue inside ancient ceramic pots from 11th–12th century Jerusalem has found that they were potentially used...

Amateur divers discover ‘enormously valuable’ hoard of Roman coins

27 September 2021

27 September 2021

Two amateur free divers have found one of the largest collections of Roman coins in Europe off the east coast of Spain. Luis Lens...

Archaeologists find a 5,000-year-old piece of wood in Orkney, which they describe as “astonishing”

10 August 2021

10 August 2021

Archaeologists continue to make surprising discoveries in Orkney. Although organic materials are quite difficult to find, archaeologists have found a...

In Cyprus, an important early Christian site has been discovered

12 September 2021

12 September 2021

An important Christian settlement was discovered with mosaics bearing clear inscriptions in Greek during the excavations carried out by the...

Roman-era Mixers and Millstones Made with Geology in Mind

22 September 2021

22 September 2021

A study on stone tools from an outpost of the Roman Empire has found that for ancient bakers and millers,...

A farmer discovered artifacts of the Unetice culture in his field

19 August 2021

19 August 2021

A farmer in Sulęcin county in Poland’s Lubusz province discovered a rare treasure while trying to clear stones from his...