Bringing “snowploughs”, heroes of the snow country, to the spotlight in summer. A snowplough dance performance.

Echigo-Tsumari is one of the regions in Japan known for heavy snowfall. Snow covers the entire city in winter, preventing people and cars from moving around. Snowploughs steadily support the community, starting work at three o’clock in the morning in winter when everyone is still fast asleep, clearing snow from streets by around seven, before everyone else’s day begins.

Mierle Laderman Ukeles from Denver in Colorado in the U.S.A, visited Echigo-Tsumari in summer for the first time. Hearing about the heavy snowfall in winter and the struggles that local people experience with clearing snow, she realised that “the rich beauty of summer exists in exchange for such a challenging winter”. She then started to explore how to engage snow-clearing workers with creating her artwork.

Her project was an unprecedented performance, Snowploughs dancing to Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”. She cast thirteen snowploughs, including tyre dozers with gigantic blades for clearing snow from the street, rotaries for blowing off snow, and graders leveling piled up snow in order, to express the vigor of the people who live in the harsh natural environment.

“I suggested to the snow workers eight movements, comprising opening; rolling; “Romeo and Juliet”; spiral; zigzag; compliment to the audience; long diagonal line; and the grand finale. I refused to plan in advance. Despite a potential risk, I was certain that I would succeed by working with snow workers.” (remarks by the artist when the artwork was created.)

In the first performance in 2003, the snowploughs delicately expressed the earnest feelings of lovers perfectly with coordinated group dancing. The stage was a riverbank close to the Tsumari-Ohashi bridge over the Shinanogawa River. For the artist, human beings living with nature as well as humans loving each other is a common theme linking people everywhere. The snowploughs were the representation of an existence that overcome challenges and opens up pathways.

The performance in 2003 was staged once only and became legendary amongst local people as well as visitors to the festival. It was restaged for three days as the “Snow Workers Ballet 2012” in summer in 2012 nine years later, bringing the artist and snow workers together again. In addition to the performance, they had a proud moment as the snowploughs paraded through the city.

Making of “Snow Workers Ballet”. The documentary of the re-stage of the performance after approximately 10 years after the first performance.

Fram Kitagawa　“Editor-in-chief” of the web-magazine, art begins from the earth / General Director, Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale

Winter in Echigo-Tsumari is harsh and the snow stays in some parts of the region for half a year. Snowploughs and snow workers have been one of the things that support life in such communities for generations. The artist managed to turn “snow workers” into a dance company which is a naïve but vigorous concept capable of inspiring a humorous performance.

After the performance, the audience ran towards the actors – namely snowploughs and their operators. This artwork celebrated the vigor of humans living under the harsh climate and praised snow workers who support the entire region in winter in the middle of summer sunlight. While a temporary work from a material perspective, “Snow Workers Ballet” is an enduring part of the Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale.