Welcome back to Mac Claire, your curated destination for all things Music, Arts, and Culture! Today's special feature is all about pumpkins and how they relate to history, pop culture, art, and entertainment. For those who celebrate it, Halloween is one of the biggest holidays of the year and the pumpkin, especially the carved Jack O'Lantern, has long-served as the iconic, bright-orange symbol of this spooky holiday. October is filled with trips to pumpkin patches and decorating pumpkins with our friends and family. We consume basically anything that's pumpkin flavored: Pumpkin Spice Lattes, Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Spice-flavored Peeps, and even Pumpkin Spice-scented Deodorant (really, it exists). So, what started it all? When and why did the pumpkin become the king of Halloween? After that we're going to dive into how pumpkin decorating has evolved since the humble Jack O'Lantern to turn into a true form of art. I'll highlight some of my favorite pumpkin designs and styles and maybe give you some ideas on how you can beef up your pumpkin decorating game. Let's get rolling!
The History
Ever heard of Samhain? It's an ancient Celtic festival that marks the end of the fall harvest season and the change into the "darker" months of the year. According to History, "people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts" during the holiday. Both All Saints Day and Halloween were derived from the traditions of Samhain and the story of the Jack O'Lantern is also derived from Celtic roots.
The Tale of Stingy Jack is an Irish one with many interpretations, but the basic synopsis is that Stingy Jack (an old, drunken man) played a trick on the Devil that kept the Devil from collecting his soul when he died. When the time came, Stingy Jack went to Heaven but wasn't let in because of how he led his life on Earth. He then went down to Hell, but wasn't let in there either; the Devil kept his word and refused to collect Stingy Jack's soul. With no where to go, the old man spent eternity roaming between Heaven and Hell guided by the light of a hallowed-out turnip with an ember from the flames of Hell inside. Hence, the "Jack O'Lantern".
This tale inspired Irish people to put a carved vegetable (turnip, rutabaga, potato, or whatever else they could find) with an ember inside it by their homes to ward off "evil spirits" on All Hallow's Eve. When Irish immigrants came to the United States of America they discovered the pumpkin, a crop that wasn't native to Ireland. Upon discovering that the pumpkin was much easier to carve, they began using it for their Jack O'Lanterns instead of turnips and other small vegetables. Though we carve pumpkins for fun in this day and age, it's interesting to remember that our holiday activity derived from the tradition of warding off evil spirits.
In doing my research I was not able to find the history behind pumpkin painting, however. Either little is known or there is no particular time/reason from which pumpkin painting was derived. Perhaps people started painting pumpkins instead of carving them because it wasn't as messy. Or maybe it was because the belief of evil spirits faded for some, or because no one needed a physical "lantern" once electricity was invented. Who knows?! Either way, those who don't enjoy gutting out a pumpkin find pumpkin painting to be a great alternative!
The Art of the Pumpkin
When it comes to decorating pumpkins, the possibilities are endless and some people have actually turned pumpkin carving and painting into a career. Just this year the Food Network released a new series called Outrageous Pumpkins, a pumpkin carving competition where the competitors make true works of art out the great orange icon. While we're not all master carvers and painters, decorating pumpkins allows each of us to unleash our inner artist. If you're in need of some inspiration for decorating your pumpkin this year, though, look no further! I'm going to dive into some of the best pumpkin decorating "genres".
Carved Pumpkins:
If you're looking to carve a pumpkin, consider carving a comical pumpkin, a scary pumpkin, or an artsy pumpkin. Two types of comical pumpkins that get me every time are Puking Pumpkins and Stem-As-Nose Pumpkins. Puking pumpkins have carved queasy expressions with big, wide-open mouths; pumpkin guts and seeds spill out of them just like... well, you get the idea. The concept has also been adopted by foodies who have found puking pumpkins to be a great addition to the Halloween Party food table. Stem-As-Nose Pumpkins are usually flipped sideways and have painted or carved faces, with the stem serving as the nose. Every pumpkin stem is different, which means some pumpkins have comically long noses and others have super short noses. Using the stem as your pumpkin's nose gives it a quirky appearance and really adds to the character of your work of art.
Scary pumpkins are the go-to for most Halloween lovers, since it is "spooky season" after all. My favorite type of scary pumpkins are those carved with frightening expressions, scary creatures like bats, skeletons, and spiders, or dark, villainous characters from popular Halloween movies and shows.
When it comes to artsy pumpkins, they too can be painted or carved and often display famous works of fine art like Edvard Munch's The Scream, Gustav Klimt's The Kiss, or Van Gogh's Starry Night. Another type of artsy pumpkin is the kind that embraces artists' tools, like paint, crayons, charcoal, etc. I've seen many of these across the internet, but one of my favorite is the melted crayon pumpkin, which gives the pumpkin a beautiful dripped-wax, rainbow effect.
From Beginning to End, Photos Courtesy of: Cool Pumpkin Designs Blogspot, Don't Go Bacon My Heart, Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons, Mommyish, The Carving Gallery, The Carving Gallery, Ariel Minervini, The Guardian, and The Nerd's Wife
Painted Pumpkins:
If you're looking to paint a pumpkin this year, consider making a be-dazzled pumpkin, patterned pumpkin, or symbolic pumpkin. Be-dazzled pumpkins are my favorite type of pumpkin, because I absolutely adore anything chic and glam. Glitter pumpkins, jeweled pumpkins, and metallic pumpkins bring out the glitzier side of Halloween, and while this type of pumpkin is something you could easily buy at Home Sense, Marshall's, or any local home goods store, it's so fun and worthwhile to make your own!
Patterned pumpkins are great because they can fit the aesthetic of any home. Have open shelving that displays your chinoiserie tea set? Paint a chinoiserie pumpkin! Have marble countertops in your kitchen and want to display a pumpkin that matches? Paint a marble pumpkin! Leopard print, polka dots, gingham, lace- the options are endless!
Symbolic pumpkins are usually painted one solid color that stands for something. The teal pumpkin has become a symbol of Allergy Awareness. If you see a teal pumpkin outside of someone's home while Trick-or-Treating, it may mean that they are an allergy-friendly home serving treats free of popular allergens like nuts and gluten. This year, in the time of COVID-19, there has been a movement to put out purple pumpkins to symbolize that your home is a safe and open destination for Trick-or-Treaters. Many also paint pink pumpkins as a symbol for Breast Cancer Awareness month and when I turned 16 many moons ago, my party centerpieces were pumpkins and fall leaves spray-painted in the classic "Sweet 16" colors of pink and black.
From Beginning to End, Photos Courtesy of: HGTV, Erika Brechtel, Monica Wants It, Effortless Style Interiors Blog
Photos Are My Own
Photo Is My Own
Neither:
If you're looking for a no-paint or no-carve pumpkin design this year (or something that doesn't involve a real pumpkin at all!), look no further than crafty pumpkins and accessorized pumpkins. Accessorized pumpkins are brilliantly simple; all you have to do is pick up a "sincere" pumpkin at the pumpkin patch or store and add on accessories like glasses, bow ties, and scarves to give your pumpkin a life of its own!
Want something that looks like a pumpkin but won't rot and is something you'll be able to keep year after year? Crafty pumpkins are the choice for you! You can make a pumpkin out of old sweaters or fuzzy socks, toilet paper or tissues, and even velvet or felt. There are plenty of great ideas out there that will put your DIY skills to the test!
From Beginning to End, Photos are Courtesy of: Tattered Treasures Shop Blogspot, Uniquely Taylor Made, Hotskwash, Pretty Providence
Pumpkined-out? Me too! Not really though- I'm ready to go paint some more and buy myself an iced Pumpkin Spiced Latte! I hope you this article got you into the Halloween spirit and taught you more about the origins of our yearly pumpkin traditions. I'm looking forward to continuing the spooky season articles next Thursday; I'll be talking all about the "witchiest" town in the USA- Salem, Massachusetts! My Mac Weekly Highlight will be coming out on Monday as well.
If you enjoyed this article please give it a heart and a share- I'd really appreciate it! Also, be sure to connect with Mac Claire on Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest, where I've created a board with all of the pumpkins I featured in this article. You can also hit the "subscribe" button and be the first to know whenever a new article goes up! Lastly, check out the links below for more information on the things mentioned in this special feature. Talk to you soon and keep up the Halloween spirit!
~Claire
Links
Further Historical Background on Halloween and the Jack O'Lantern: https://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween#:~:text=The%20tradition%20originated%20with%20the,of%20the%20traditions%20of%20Samhain
Website for the Decorative Sticker Seen in Cover Photo: https://magicallystyled.com/
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