Residents of Knightsbridge Road in Carlingwood are being treated to a private Winterlude Festival, courtesy of their neighbour.

The street on Ottawa’s west end has come to life during the holidays for the past six years, thanks to the creativity and artistry of resident Scott Doidge. 

Doidge, who is employed with the federal government, has no artistic background, but that hasn’t stopped him from building life-like snow sculptures in his front yard. The longtime Carlingwood resident says what began as a fun activity for his kids has snowballed into an annual endeavor.

“Well, it's been a process of trial and error. I started largely by making snow forts for my kids. And they were a little in the backyard and just watching how the snowboard sort of their stability and how they evolved. And I just decided I could try to turn that into sculpture. Maybe But six years ago, I tried the first one and had a lot of time on my hands and tried a lot last year."

Doidge says his sculptures are a favourite among neighbourhood kids, especially his rendition of the "poop emoji." Photo by Janet Campbell.

Doidge built his first sculpture years ago and has since been improving the quality and size of his sculptures. He says that last year the hobby was what kept him busy during winter lockdowns that forced many to work from home. 

Doidge says that his kids used to help by shoveling snow for him, but now they’ve assumed an oversight role as part of his “creative team.” Doidge’s neighbours, however, do lend a hand from time-to-time.

“I think they're huge fans,” says Doidge. “Some of them tell me which ones they liked, and in fact, which ones they don't. My immediate neighbour always volunteers to blow his snow into my yard so that I have some extra snow to use because it does take a lot.”

Doidge says with each significant snowfall, he tries to gather as much snow as possible, because a lot is needed to build his sculptures.

Due to a lack of heavy snowfall this year, Doidge has built only one sculpture so far. It’s a four-foot-tall depiction of Dr. Seuss’s Grinch. 

Doidge has been entertaining his neighbours with these sculptures for the past six years. Photo by Janet Campbell.

“It was pretty neat last year to watch it become a bit of a walking destination for people in the neighborhood,” says Doidge. “And even this year, I've had people tell me that they deliberately walked down my street after the big snowfall hoping to see something. So I didn't want to let them down.”

In past years, Doidge has decorated his lawn with a variety of popular animated characters, such as a 12-foot-tall Donkey Kong. A depiction of the infamous “poop emoji” was part of the display a few years ago, and, according to Doidge, it found favour with many of the younger kids in the area. He says he has some additions to the collection this year which he anticipates will put the whole neighborhood in good spirits.

“I was thinking of Gary from Spongebob this year, he's always popular… with the kids,” says Doidge. “And I thought maybe Godzilla destroying a snowman village would be good as well. But we'll see how that one goes. I'm trying to pick stuff that's a little more lighthearted and that all ages will largely recognize.”

Doidge says the joy he brings to his neighbours is something he looks forward to every year.

“I get lots of people complimenting my efforts and commenting on it,” says Doidge. “I love watching people stop by and take pictures of it. And there was a bunch of little ones around it smiling this morning, so that's nice.”

Doidge welcomes neighbours and community members to pass by Knightsbridge Road in the coming weeks and enjoy his creations together.

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