A dove and cornucopia.
A bull rider and a knight on horseback. Aren't carving kits fun? I used patterns for everything this year except for my face pumpkins and the big "Welcome 2 Trunk 'n' Treat" carving, a pumpkin that made the front page of the local paper!
Here's my personal favorite - George Washington praying at Valley Forge.
It was fun looking for ideas appropriate to put in front of the church. I ruled out all the blood sucking scary ghost zombie murderer patterns, plus all of the celebrities. Toyed with the idea of something patriotic, but finally decided that Halloween + political symbols + church had potential to be misconstrued on oh-so many levels.
Here's one of the Disco Pumpkins, white pumpkins filled with changing multi-colored lights. I Never did get a very good picture...hmm...maybe I should try again?
Here are the two Disco Pumpkins in daylight, looking mighty fine.
One nice thing about so many gutted pumpkins - endless supply of roasted seeds. Well, not endless, but the entire family's been devouring them since All Hallow's and we're still not making much of a mark. And right now I have a loaf of pumpkin bread in the oven, and pumpkin soup in the fridge, and we had pumpkin in the stir fry at lunch... You can never have too much pumpkin in life, says I.
Today's pumpkin bread nearly stopped at the eggs/sugar/butter stage. Such a delicious concoction, why bother going on?
Aaa...! I am the Ghost of Rotting Pumpkins, here to tell you to not to wait until the last minute to carve next year....aaaaaaaaaaaah!
7 comments:
Wow. I kind of thought the George Washington idea was a joke. You are the most amazing pumpkin carver I have ever witnessed, and I read Martha Stewart.
Wow! Impressive! Even with the carving kit I still mess mine up!
I miss roasted pumpkin seeds...they remind me of GF...sigh.
Hey Katie, Adam here
Amazing pumpkin work! Do you find that the transience of pumpkins makes the art more worthwhile and meaningful, or is true art more permanent?
I like your "crazy aunt" designation :-)
Those are awesome. You have skills. I'm glad I was able to see the pictures.
Hey, thanks for all the comments, my peeps! I do love the compliments.
MLS - roast your own? It's easy!
Kidd, I prefer to hang on to every tiny scrap of artwork that I ever create, so yes, making something that quickly decays is a bit of a freeing experience. However, I still keep the pattern, so the work is never truly lost.
Some people like to make temporary art, and part of the creative process takes place with destruction. But I develop a connection with anything I create to the point that I almost endow it with a unique personality, which is why it's difficult for me to discard anything. It can be both beneficial and crippling.
So given your preference for retention, when you create "art" that is temporary do you need to mentally/emotionally disconnect and almost see it as "work" rather than art? Is it possible to say that you can replicate artworks because you have the template, or is a small part of you imprinted on the pumpkin when it is carved and that is what makes it unique?
After all, is , say, an exact copy of the statue of David as good as the real thing? I've seen many photos and reproductions, but to stand in front of the original and imagine Michaelangelo creating it is something that would generate a strong emotional response.
I guess we can back and forth on the nature of art all day! At least you will have a bit more time to yourself in <1 day when you see off the new Grandparents :-)
The Kidd
Whoops! I nearly missed your new comment, Kidd.
Yes, when I'm creating some sort of functional art, an assignment such as some signs I recently made for the church, I tend to disconnect with it more, and at that point principles I have previously learned take over, sort of a creative autopilot. It is not quite as enjoyable as creating something with no end goal in mind, although I still take pride in the final product. I think I'm becoming a chronic perfectionist, so I don't stop working until I'm satisfied, temporary or not.
For example, both the pumpkins and the signs were extremely temporary, yet I pulled all-nighters on them, so something of me must have been vested in the projects. I don't feel, however, that I made a real connection with them, which made it easier to let them go. (Also, probably, quicker to actually do.)
I think there's a subtle yet critical difference between inspired and assigned art, that one literally has a "soul" that the other does not. The statue of David is a perfect example of a piece that was created with passion, while copies of it can only try to capture the end result.
It becomes difficult to debate this at some point, however, since the creation and appreciation and definition of art is such a personal, subjective thing.
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