Specially decorated and lighted gourds have taken over Paulus Park in Lake Zurich with the opening of the annual “Jack O’Lantern World” display.
The Halloween-themed, monthlong showcase opened Sept. 29 and is a celebration of a hand-carved tradition born in the British Isles. These jack-o-lanterns are an updated, artistic twist on the annual ritual, with some of the giant gourds carved into celebrity faces, cash money and wild animals. Others are assembled into some larger piece, including a pirate ship or fighting dinosaurs.
While some of the art is done on pumpkins, others are made of foam. But, they share at least two things in common: Each is hand-carved and both typically take hours to carve.
Dozens of artists craft them and, each year, the show offers new designs.
Cindy S., a longtime carver and first-year manager of the show, said opening weekend was gangbusters.
“I think it went fantastically,” she said. “We’ve gotten typically visitors in the thousands each day,”
The exhibition runs every Thursday through Sunday throughout the month in the park and tickets must be purchased online prior to the start times, which begin at dusk – minutes after the evening sun has entirely set. Tickets run $16 for kids to $24 for adults. The event is for all ages and backgrounds and includes an Americans with Disabilities Act-accessible paved path of less than a mile.
“We’ve had people drive five hours in every direction to get here,” said Cindy S.
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The event – though based in Lake Zurich – has spread like a pumpkin vine outside the area to include a Jack O’Lantern World event in west suburban Lemont and another in Columbus, Ohio.
Tamalima Das happened to be visiting Paulus Park just before the gates opened to the show and she said she had not attended since the COVID-19 pandemic. But, she said she was thinking of coming back this year.
“I liked the people, the way they carved the pumpkins, it’s really unique,” said Das
Another visitor who had tickets, Peter Merkle, said it was his first time experiencing Jack O’Lantern World.
“It’s a lovely night for jack-o-lanterns,” said Merkle, who had driven from nearby Long Grove. “It’s a good time to enjoy the season.”
The venue also includes a beer tent, a lemonade stand, a roasted corn vendor and food trucks – including one selling gyros – and there are other vendors selling mementos.
But, of course, the jack-o-lanterns are the main attraction.
“I would just say, come to our show and take a look,” this year’s event manager said. “We have so many new pumpkins and every year we have new displays. There’s always something new to see.”
Jesse Wright is a freelancer.