Carnival Floats
The traditional technique in the construction of the floats used wire for the frame on which they stuck newspaper layers with starch and when these finally dried, they were colored and painted. Nowadays wire is replaced by metal frames and the newspapers by felizol and polyester.
Throughout the history of the Patras carnival, various popular painters, and some skilful technicians, who invented certain mechanisms that set the floats in motion, became local legends. Apart from the paper floats they also constructed flower floats where the wire frame was covered and decorated with seasonal flowers. The float of the carnival queen has always been decorated with flowers. These technicians received their orders from the float sponsors and, after 1952, were selected through a design contest organized by the municipality. In 1988, a carnival workshop was established to manufacture the floats, the city's carnival (and Christmas) decoration ect. It was staffed by veteran technicians and graduates of a special (carnival!) technical school (1987-88).
Today it is housed in a specially constructed building (1994) which also hosts an interesting exhibition of carnival floats. The masquerades were traditional carnival constructions, using a similar technique, of a smaller size though, so hat they could be borne and operated by a person in their interior. This was what gave a particular vivacity to the masquerades, one of the favorite features of the carnival procession. Unfortunately, from the 70s onwards they disappeared due to reluctance and lack of people for their operation. |
|
