We’ve got nine reasons why you should definitely be making plans to take a closer look at North Bay’s Ice Follies. Located on the shores of frozen Lake Nipissing (yes, really!), this year festival offers nine massive art installations for visitors to check out—and is just a 3.5-hour drive from the GTA.
Ice Follies in North Bay, Ontario is a biennial contemporary and community art festival that runs for two weeks every second February. This year the Ice Follies runs February 7th - 21st, 2025 and it’s welcoming a variety of arts presenters from Toronto, North Bay and New Liskeard.
Ice Follies is free, and it’s open 24/7! Just head to Shabogesic Beach (formerly known as Marathon Beach) and Olmstead Beach on Trout Lake to see the art set up right on the ice. Return as often as you like to see the exhibits in various weather conditions or at different times of day. Discover your favourite conditions for viewing the installations…is it sparkling bright daylight, swirling snow, or moody twilight?
This year’s theme, “Ozhaashikwaa (The Ice is Slippery),” explores connection, collaboration, and history, celebrating North Bay’s Centennial!
Indigenous arts collective Aanmitaagzi creates multidisciplinary works celebrating community and culture. Andrew Ackerman's collaboration with Nipissing University Fine Arts students Ross Kozuskanich and Ellie Laberge explores our complicated and increasingly tenuous relationship with the natural world. Hyperboreal, led by Dermot Wilson and Jason Brock, explores the intersection of sound and digital media. Darren Copeland and the sound artists of NAISA craft immersive soundscapes from natural ice recordings. Nico Glaude examines communication through visual art, while Studio Nude Beach brings large-scale illuminated sculptures to life. David Chops, from Northeastern Ontario’s boreal forest, creates powerful works blending urban and rural influences. Liz Lott, a North Bay-based photographer and artist, captures dynamic art installations at Ice Follies, blending intimate portraiture with environmental themes. Franco-Ontarian media artist Anyse Ducharme is a curator and teacher, and her internationally exhibited work explores technology's impact on knowledge and representation.
Aanmitaagzi’s multi-year project All My R(el)ations dives into themes of community and interconnectedness through immersive storytelling.
Andrew Ackerman, Ross Kozuskanich and Ellie Laberge present Fire and Flood, a powerful installation addressing environmental challenges.
Hyperboreal, featuring Dermot Wilson and Jason Brock, offers Ice Shifts/Elevations, a mesmerizing immersive blend of light and sound on frozen Trout Lake.
Studio Nude Beach's Beastie Bones brings glowing sculptures to life, casting ethereal light across the icy landscape.
Darren Copeland and NAISA create Ephemeral Resonance, weaving soundscapes from ice recordings.
Liz Lott’s photographic installation captures the festival’s rich history, showcasing one photograph for every participating artist since the event’s inception, and reflects Lott’s heartfelt dedication to documenting the magic of Ice Follies and its impact on our community and beyond.
Nico Glaude’s Sign Language explores wayfinding and communication through a striking installation of towering 8-foot “monoliths" that symbolize the journey of falling, finding direction, and grounding oneself again.
David Chops’ A Spectrum of Interconnected Cooperation explores unity through ambitious, large-scale installations, blending urban and rural influences to highlight environmental and social issues, inviting reflection on interconnectedness.
Anyse Ducharme’s the water was a glass sheet highlights the tension between lived experience and the flattening effect of digital communication, and explores the fluid nature of knowledge and representation in the digital age.
Each work transforms the ice into a canvas, making the cold a playground for vibrant, thought-provoking creativity.
Join a guided walking tour led by Artist Colin Davis, offering unique insights and in-depth information about each artwork. Day and night tours feature slightly different experiences. Tickets are $10 per person, with a free tour on Family Day.
Back by popular demand, on Family Day there will be a free-to-participate community choir amidst the artworks, facilitated by friends, Lindsay Sullivan and Rose Erin Stokes. All are invited to join and sing along or listen! Aanmitaagzi will also be on-site during Family Day, activating their area with drumming and dancing. All are invited to come out and participate.
Head to the Spotlight Lounge in the Capitol Centre on opening weekend to hear some insightful and engaging artist talks with this year’s presented artists. Discover the inspiration and stories behind their incredible works.
February 8th, 2025 from 12 – 4pm:
• Nico Glaude
• David Chops
• Aanmitaagzi
February 9th, 2025 from 12 – 4pm:
• Anyse Ducharme
• Studio Nude Beach
Outdoor art festivals are usually pretty cool and memorable, and Ice Follies certainly delivers. Bundle up for an unforgettable outing right on the North Bay waterfront and the shores of Nipissing First Nation. In the (arguably) snowiest, coldest, iciest month of winter, you get to experience something that’s uniquely northern and a feast for the senses.
Visit these sites to learn more about the Ice Follies and how to visit North Bay.
