10/15/16
In our ceaseless search for new and exciting adventures, Pam decided we should go to see the mass pumpkin carving and art show called “Rise of The Jack O’Lanterns” at the Convention Center. What could I say? Of course, I thought it was a great idea. I mean I went to see the 40 foot bunnies invading downtown earlier this year, so looking at a bunch of carved pumpkins sounded great. In reality, I think it was just an excuse to get me to go downtown on the Metro Link, so I can enjoy the kitschy surroundings on the way there.
I grew up in Los Angeles. Until recently downtown was a ghost town on the weekends. Not anymore. There is lots to do and lots of people are downtown every weekend. There are even people paying lots of rent to live downtown, actually outnumbering the ones who live rent free. So we went downtown, accompanied by Kristin, as John was on a tour de national park with his brother in law, Don. The ride downtown was fine, despite the fact that it was crowded enough that I had to stand just about the whole way. Thankfully, the antiseptic smells were muted, no other smells were wafting inside the cabin of the car, and no one was talking to themselves or yelling at other passengers.
We exited the car and made our way to the Convention Center. It came as no small shock to me that there were lots of people there, even people without kids, like us. It also came as no small shock to me that there
were lots of pumpkins, something on the order of 5,000 of them, all in various states of decay. The smell of pumpkin was palpable and concentrated due to the indoor nature of the event. It was dark enough in there that I had to be careful not to run into people and strollers, especially strollers, which were left indiscriminately in my path. Speaking of paths, the event literature mentioned that it would take about 45 minutes to walk the entire path, and advised all visitors to visit the facilities before starting down the path. I envisioned we would all be walking in the same direction, just flowing thru the exhibit following the person in front of me. The reality was that there was no path. Sure going in and out was not allowed, but I could walk any way I wanted and see the exhibit in any way I desired. Knowing my proclivity for taking shortcuts through museums and other exhibits, Pam and Kris put the kibosh on that, and I was relegated to the rear, as they negotiated the “path.”
The exhibit was cool, odd, but cool. There were “sculptures” made with stacks of pumpkins, there were big pumpkins with carved faces and bodies of superheroes, famous figures, sports teams, political candidates and other evils, and there were individually carved pumpkins laying almost obscurely on the floor. The overall effect was chillingly eerie. Pam and Kris made sure I saw every square inch and round pumpkin face in the exhibit. By the time we finished , I was ready for Tequila, which I had no doubt that I would order when we ate dinner at El Cholo.
This was an interestingly difficult event to produce. It was in the Convention Center for four days. It’s hard to imagine carving 5,000 pumpkins, but they did. And then two weeks later in Pomona they do it again. I have no idea how long it takes to carve a complex design on a pumpkin. I remember how long it took me to carve simple faces on pumpkins in my youth and with my kids. For me the time consuming and tough part was creating a design to fit the face of the pumpkin I was carving. I always believed that there was a face waiting to be exposed in every pumpkin, it just took time to see it before I started. Of course, the face I was carving was just a motley collection of squares, circles and triangles. Even so, I never had a plan in mind before I saw the pumpkin. I guess if you know the face you want to carve, you can pick the right pumpkin, but the thought of selecting the right pumpkin out
of a sea of 5,000 of them overwhelms me. In any event, I was pretty impressed with the skills the carvers possessed. They are artists, in the same sense that sand castle builders, and ice sculpture builders are artists. Their works are ephemeral, but they are masters of their process and their craft.
I am glad I saw the exhibit. I am glad I will probably not see it again. I am really glad I had Tequila at El Cholo after we left.