mascleta | Gary J. Kirkpatrick Art and Travel Blog

First Mascleta (huge fireworks display) on Fallas 2019!

07/07/202424/02/2019 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Last night was the opening night of Fallas in Valencia. That event is a mascleta, a huge fireworks display. It is 10 minutes of non-stop of highly coordinated firework explosions resulting in various formations and figures including stars and spirals, rockets on multiple successive heights, culminating in a vertical mascleta some 10 stories in height that is almost pure rumble, and in fact is called ‘the earthquake.” We could feel the vibrations from across the harbor, several hundred meters away.

I do mean huge! Here it is!

Fallas Valencia 2017, Mascletà Vertical

07/07/202426/02/2017 by Gary Kirkpatrick

Here are two videos of the amazing opening act of Fallas 2017. Fallas is Valencia’s annual festival, an Unesco heritage event. There are hundreds of sculptures 25 meters in height and thousands of smaller ones. There is a mascleta – fireworks without much light- every day at 2pm, and fireworks at night that are not just literally over the top. This one featured a first- 50 meter/ 165′ vertical firework trees. Amazing! The first of those below is mine and is just two minutes, the second is professionally done and is about 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Fallas 2016!- first photos

07/07/202428/02/2016 by Gary Kirkpatrick

These are the first photos from Fallas 2016. Fallas is the annual carnival in Valencia, Spain. It is truly one of the wonders of the world. They erect hundreds of sculptures made of foam and wood (these days), some of which are 25 meters (75′) in height. There are daily booming fireworks more for feel than light, daily at 2 pm. At night there are more traditional fireworks in the parks. Valencia doubles in population for the event, which starts March 1 and ends March 19 every year.

In Rusafa, a section of Valencia, there are not only fallas’ (the statues) but also sound and light shows. Here they are installing the lighting.

Much more to come!