A longtime state fair butter sculptor retires

Minnesota celebrates its dairy industry in a big way every year with the crowning of a dairy princess at the state fair. But the true belles of the ball are the work of a woman named Linda Christensen, who, for nearly 50 years, has transformed 90-pound blocks of frozen butter into sculptures of the “Princess Kay of The Milky Way” finalists. Christensen is retiring this year, reports the Star Tribune, after sharing the secrets of her unusual craft with another sculptor who will carry on the tradition. Butter sculptures are a beloved attraction at many state fairs, but there are not many annual events where artists carve live portraits. Indeed, Christensen is such a rarity that the butter artist’s retirement was the subject of a lengthy feature this week in The Washington Post.