One of the artists in attendance at this year's Nagano Games-related competition is Japanese ice sculptor Kenji Ogawa, who prides himself on sculpting with traditional ice carving tools instead of the widely used power tools.

Ogawa says his sculptures are designed to spread a message of peace and respect for nature.

Despite having competed in the world championships for the last 12 years, the 40-year-old Ogawa is planning to pull out of the competition circuit next year to sculpt a mammoth ice bust of slain Beatles singer John Lennon in New York's Central Park in the year 2000.

''I'm still trying to get (Lennon's widow) Yoko Ono's approval for the project,'' he said. Ogawa also dreams about carving Mahatma Gandhi, father of Indian independence, into an Arctic iceberg to greet the 21st century with a message of peace.

Ogawa, who learned his skills in Nagano Prefecture, emigrated to Australia in 1976, where he set up his own ice carving business near Sydney, catering to restaurants to fund his more ambitious artistic projects.

Ogawa's latest work, ''One Day,'' features an elderly woman and a child who ''one day'' will become an adult too. The sculpture is currently on display in the resort town of Karuizawa, some 80 kilometers southeast of Nagano City, together with the other entries in the Nagano Games' ice sculpting contest.

A similar Olympic snow sculpting competition is slated for Feb. 14-15 in the town of Iiyama, about 30 kilometers northeast of Nagano.

With four ice and snow sculpting associations, and harsh, snowy winters in its northern region, Japan is among the leading sources of talent and teachers.

''Ice and snow sculpting are more poplar in Japan than elsewhere,'' said Juhani Lillberg, president of the International Association of Snow and Ice Sculpture, which helps organize many international competitions.

Taiwan's Kuo Chin-lung, chef at Taipei's Regent Hotel, learned his craft in Tokyo some 14 years ago. For Kuo, 40, competitions are an opportunity to realize his own creations, free from the constraints that he encounters at work.

The icy images that Kuo carves for banquets and weddings are custom-ordered and revolve around rather traditional motifs, he said.

''Fortunately there are few weddings around the Chinese New Year, so I was able to come to Japan,'' he said.

According to Lillberg, most European sculptors are professional artists, while the bulk of Japanese and other Asian contestants have learned their sculpting skills in down-to-earth trades such as the restaurant business and interior decoration. This is reflected in their designs, he added.

Consequently, the international trend goes toward separating abstract and realistic sculpting to make judging easier, he said.

International competitions draw about 500 of the thousands of ice and snow sculptors around the globe each year.

''The family is very big,'' Lillberg said.

(Kyodo News)