After a historic blizzard blanketed New York City in snow, one Brooklyn park transformed into what a TikTok user dubbed a “snowman museum”—and millions online were quick to agree.
Matthew Dean Stewart, as matthewdeanstewart, took to TikTok following the snow storm to document an array of elaborate snow creations that had popped up across the park.
In the now-viral video, viewed 14.3 million times in two days, Stewart wandered from sculpture to sculpture, reacting in real time to the creativity on display.
“Please look at all the snowmen in this park after a New York City blizzard. Let’s look,” he began, panning his camera across the snowy landscape.
What followed was a tour of everything from a “full pyramid” built from stacked snow blocks to a carefully crafted Hello Kitty figure and a towering snowman Stewart described as, “the biggest snowman I’ve ever seen in my life.”
He pointed out details with amused disbelief—pine needles fashioned into eyelashes, a snow wig perched atop one figure and even a snow sculpture styled like SpongeBob.
One woman even sat in the snow making ice cream and handing out samples to passersby.
At one point, he laughed at a particularly intricate design, saying, “That is insane,” before adding later, “That sh** was whimsical as f***. It’s iconic.”
‘Powerful nor’easter’
The video arrives in the wake of what NBC New York described as a “powerful nor’easter” that escalated into a full-blown blizzard across the tri-state area.
The organization reported that Central Park recorded nearly 20 inches, making it a top 10 snowfall for the area, while parts of Long Island saw even higher totals.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned residents the storm would be historic.
“It’s going to exceed all expectations even now, so you need to be prepared for the worst,” Hochul said, adding that New York City was bracin,g “to make some history, be in the top 10 worst winter storms in the last 150 years,” according to NBC News.
Despite the dangerous travel conditions and suspended transit services reported by NBC New York, Stewart’s video captures a lighter side of the storm’s aftermath: neighbors coming together outdoors to create playful works of art.
Viewers flooded the comments section with almost 29,000 comments, mostly in praise.
As one TikTok fan offered, Thank you for taking us to the snowman museum!”
Another pundit thought this was, “literally the best winter on the East Coast in years.”
A fellow contributor declared that the scene was, “a whole art exhibit.”
Whiteout Conditions
The sense of community creativity stood in contrast to the disruptions caused by the storm. NBC New York reported that blizzard warnings were issued across all five boroughs, with sustained winds of more than 35 mph and visibility dropping below a quarter mile at times, creating whiteout conditions.
Yet as the snow settled and skies cleared, Stewart’s tour showed how quickly New Yorkers reclaimed their public spaces. From icy igloos to delicately carved animals and cartoon characters, the park became a temporary outdoor gallery—one built entirely from fresh powder.
Newsweek has reached out to matthewdeanstewart for comment via TikTok. We could not verify the details of the case.
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