CL-October 2024 - 13

COOPERATIVE FOCUS
Snow White - 2022
Dickover carves pumpkins with
son Justin and daughter Sarah.
in clear plastic bags to be stored in a
refrigerator until they are set out to
shine in all their gourd glory.
Dickover's carvings are primarily
inspired by science fi ction and fantasy
movie and television characters.
He's carved something for everyone:
Malefi cent, Minions, Mickey Mouse,
Aladdin, Harry Potter, Pokémon,
Pirates of the Caribbean, Corpse Bride,
Cat in the Hat, Jack Skellington, Star
Trek, Spiderman, Little Mermaid,
Zombies, Lady and the Tramp, Star
Wars' Darth Maul, and much more.
Th e Darth Maul he carved in 1999
R2-D2 - 2010
are very good at it, and they all have
their own style, " he says. As a result,
visitors get to see a variety of pumpkins
each year. Dickover says there can
be anywhere from 20 to 50 pumpkins
on display in his yard on Halloween.
LET THE CARVING COMMENCE
A member of Northern Virginia
Electric Cooperative, Dickover's
part-time passion dominates his
evenings beginning the second week
of October.
Using a deſt hand, a clay loop,
X-Acto knives, mini pumpkin saws
and V-shaped tools, he makes the magic
happen. He transforms plain pumpkins
into jaw-dropping works of art. It
co-opliving.com
takes Dickover anywhere from eight
to 12 hours to carve a single pumpkin.
It's at night when Dickover's
beautiful jack-o'-lantern art is meant
to shine. " I make sculpts for nighttime
viewing but search online and you'll
notice almost all the amazing threedimensional
pumpkin carvings you
see are for daytime viewing, " he notes.
" Th at wouldn't make sense for me since
I show them on Halloween night. "
Perhaps the most challenging aspect
of Dickover's work is the ephemeral
nature of pumpkins. To ensure that the
pumpkins last as long as possible once
carved, Dickover covers the carved parts
with petroleum jelly to preserve the cut
fl esh. Th en, the pumpkins are placed
was one of his fi rst carvings (along
with one of Scooby-Doo), and it's
what got him passionate about the
fascinating - yet perishable - art of
carving pumpkins. " Teenagers were
blown away by the Darth Maul, and
it's hard to get teenagers fl oored about
anything. I enjoyed doing it, so it just
grew from there, " he says.
According to Dickover, the pumpkin
that garnered the most online attention
was the Star Wars Death Star. " I'm still
mainly known for that one, " he says.
Th e 40-pound, fully rendered R2-D2
pumpkin that Dickover carved in 2010
was a huge hit, going viral just days aſt er
carving. " In thinking about carving R2D2,
I chose a tall, cylindrical-looking
(continued on page 12)
October 2024 * Cooperative Living * 11

http://www.co-opliving.com

CL-October 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CL-October 2024

CL-October 2024 - Cover 1
CL-October 2024 - 2
CL-October 2024 - 3
CL-October 2024 - 4
CL-October 2024 - 5
CL-October 2024 - 6
CL-October 2024 - 7
CL-October 2024 - 8
CL-October 2024 - 9
CL-October 2024 - 10
CL-October 2024 - 11
CL-October 2024 - 12
CL-October 2024 - 13
CL-October 2024 - 14
CL-October 2024 - 15
CL-October 2024 - 16
CL-October 2024 - 17
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CL-October 2024 - 22
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CL-October 2024 - 25
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CL-October 2024 - 28
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CL-October 2024 - 34
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CL-October 2024 - 39
CL-October 2024 - 40
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