Laser Carved Pumpkin Produces Impressive Results and Terrible Smells

Happy Halloween!

          Today we live in a world of instant gratification and where we try to find the easiest and least time-consuming ways to get things done. When it comes to Halloween and decorations, pumpkin carving is usually most associated with this event. There are two types of people: those who can't wait to show their artistic side when creating a unique pumpkin, and those who could care less whether they even have a pumpkin or not. Luckily, Jake Chalkley has made this process perhaps more appealing to both parties.

          Chalkley decided that the design he chose for his pumpkin was too intricate to design for his limited carving skills. So he converted his design into vector art in the program Illustrator, then translated the results to his laser cutting machine which he placed his pumpkin in front of. When looking at the picture above, the results are definitely impressive. There is a lot of detail in the design and he even created multiple depths in the carving so that there is varying levels of glow in his design. Unfortunately, the machine is very loud and made the pumpkin smell terribly so Chalkley decided to traditionally carve his pumpkin the following year.

          This piece is a perfect example of how people use computers to generate art, in this case - a Jack-O-Lantern. However, this does not mean that using a computer is preferred, as Chalkley decided to revert back to normal by-hand carving for the following year. In a piece like a pumpkin, not using something as advanced as a laser cutting machine is valued more; if he did the same design using his own hand, I'm sure people would appreciate the art more, including himself. Like a lot of other things in life, computers can simplify the process of many actions and make it easier for the user to execute his/her work. But, sometimes the process of creating something is just as important, if not more, than the end result. We can't always rely on technology because it's not always perfect, it can make mistakes too just like humans and sometimes it's better to not just use it.