- April 7, 2025
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Longboat Key is home to artistic creations of every medium, but perhaps one of the most unique resides at Zota Beach Resort. Visitors need only turn left down the hallway past reception to come face-to-face with one of Patrick Harsch’s handcrafted sand sculptures.
Harsch has been honing his craft since the mid 1990s, and he became the owner of Tampa Bay Sandsculpting Co. in 2023.
His work is consistently on display at the resort, and though his previous creation suffered as many other buildings did in last year’s hurricanes, he recently rebuilt.
The latest piece features half a dozen stacked castle spires layered with roof tiles and window frames; a stoutly boarded gate prevents malicious attackers from storming the Zota castle.
Harsch said in an interview he met his first tutor, his neighbor, while working with a video production house shortly after graduating college.
“He had a sandbox where he would practice, and he showed me the process of how to pack the sand together,” Harsch said. “He had a little bucket, just like you would have at the beach.”
However, this bucket was modified to be open on both ends, as a tube, so the artist can layer the water and sand, then simply lift the bucket, rather than flipping it over.
The assortment of other unique tools like cake-decorating spatulas, cement trowels, melon ballers and palette knives, allows this sculptor to get to work.
“Everything can be ripped off from the kitchen or the garage for sand sculpting,” he added.
His mentor set the challenge of re-creating a carnival teddy bear, and Harsch tried his hand at it. He must have done well because he received a job offer on the spot, and he has continued sand sculpting the rest of his life.
Be it for a large-scale competition piece or an intricate design like that found at the resort, the required techniques are fairly similar. Maintaining consistent levels of packing and ratios of sand to water is essential, especially when it’s a long-lasting design.
Harsch said he has made about five sculptures for Zota, and with his experience, it takes about two days to create them. The sand comes in one wheelbarrow at a time, and he uses wooden formwork to make the larger blocks of sand he carves into intricate castle towers.
“The more details you add, the more your eye looks around the piece,” he said, noting how viewers enjoy peering through cut-through windows and other design elements.
However, it is always a balancing act between building awe-inspiring, gravity defying aspects and a structure to last as long as possible.
“You try to push the sand as far as you can push it, but there’s a mantra — safe is pretty,” he said.
The pieces get updated about twice a year, but the impression they make on guests lasts a lifetime.
Fans of his work can also find it on display at other resorts and The Mall at University Town Center.
His business provides opportunities to stay sharp throughout the year, but Harsch always looks forward to the area’s sand sculpting competitions, particularly the Pier 60 Sugar Sand Festival. Asked about one of his all-time favorite pieces, he said his entry, “The Muse,” holds a special place. He said he was inspired by Christopher Moore’s book Sacré Bleu: A Comedy d'Art.
The towering sculpture features a figure coming to life from the paint on an artist’s palette. Harsch said the author actually got to see his work after the showcase and shared it online.
This year’s festival has a new element – public input. Voters selected the theme of dinosaurs, upon which sculptors will base their designs this April. For more information, visit SugarSandFestival.com.
Whether people see his works at the festivals, resorts or other venues, Harsch hopes viewers get to enjoy the results of his years of training in an ever-changing medium.
