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Photos: Masterfully Carved Jack O'Lanterns Light Up Governors Island
By
Sarah Amar
Published Oct 31, 2017
Modified Oct 31, 2017
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Tod Seelie / Gothamist
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By
Sarah Amar
Published Oct 31, 2017
Modified Oct 31, 2017
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For everyone who has ever wanted to see Babs on a pumpkin, Rise of the Jack O'Lantern made their dreams come true this past weekend (and last night) on Governors Island. The event, Night of 1,000 Jack O'Lanterns, was peak fancy gourd, featuring dozens of artfully carved pumpkins with meticulous renditions of Spiderman, Batman, Snow White, Biggie Smalls, and Streisand herself.
Rather than carve through the wall of the jack o'lantern, artists employed a relief carving method that let the pumpkins glow from within, making for some masterful Instagram content. Each intricate, hand-carved piece involved upwards of 20 hours of work, and artists were available for demonstrations throughout the evening.
Classic monsters, Disney characters, sugar skulls, celebrities (both living and dead), military shout-outs, and comic book heroes featured heavily in the collection, alongside a selection of unsettling and impressive sculpted pumpkins with eerie 3D features.
In addition to the eye-popping pumpkin art, visitors got a glimpse of a spooky Governors Island historic site: the walk from the ferry to the pumpkin trail wound past Castle Williams, a 19th century former military fort and prison.
Both 'Night of 1000 Jack O'Lanterns' and its Long Island sister event, 'Garden of the Gourds,' are now over, for this year anyway. Enjoy Tod Seelie's photographs here as a consolation prize. And if you go next year, make sure to book in advance, as tickets are not available at the door.
For more jack o'lantern fun, head upstate for BLAZE, which continues well into November.
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halloween
jack olanterns
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Sarah Amar
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