Ice Sculpture Show to End; Slow Ticket Sales Blamed

An exhibit of Chinese ice sculpture inside a Rosemead store that had been converted into a giant freezer will close Thursday, more than two weeks early, because of slow ticket sales, an exhibit official said Monday.

More than 60,000 people have visited the exhibit to see the five dozen ice sculptures carved by Chinese artisans since it opened in May.

But show officials said Monday it was not enough to turn the required profit and they are closing the show and considering bankruptcy after investing $1 million in the exhibit.

When the show closes, operators plan to cut apart the sculptures, pull them outside and allow them to melt into 400 tons of water in the parking lot, said Walter Zhou, a spokesman for Three Dimension International Corp, the show’s operator.

He said the cost of equipment and maintaining the low temperatures was more than the show could generate from ticket prices--which started at $15 per person but have been reduced by half--and the business is $100,000 in debt.

Zhou said the show has been unable to pay its $5,000-a-month utility bill.