A pair of fantastical serpents, each 50 feet long, joined a host of art cars, cosplayers, Alice in Wonderland characters, and community groups as the 14th annual Mad Hatter Holiday Festival took place Saturday, Dec. 7, in Vallejo, California. An estimated 10,000 people turned out for the event, which is a major happening on the San Francisco Bay Area steampunk calendar.
A parade through downtown Vallejo served as the festival’s centerpiece. Obtainium Works, the Vallejo-based art studio, had a major presence with a fleet of “sculptural vehicles,” including a drivable teapot, steampunk pirate ship, and the Rudolph 5000 rocket sled. Flaming Lotus Girls was also there with the fire-breathing Dragon Wagon and a stationary installation, the Flaming Feathers.
The Serpent Twins, mobile sculptures by Oakland artists Jon Sarriugarte and Kyrsten Mate, provided the grand finale as they slithered and circled along the parade route. The all-black Jormungand, based on Norse mythology, occasionally spewed fire, while his silvery twin Julunggul lit up in rainbow colors.
Jormungand and Julunggul were first seen at Burning Man in 2011 and have also appeared at Maker Faire Bay Area and Les Machines de l’île in Nantes, France. The artists are best known to steampunk fans as the creators of the Golden Mean snail art car.
Chester, a fire-breathing horse, was slated to participate but “had a strong case of the flu and canceled his appearance,” quipped festival organizer Frank Malifrando.
Following the parade, the crowd gathered at the Airpusher Collective’s steampunk airship for a tree-lighting ceremony and a concert by Vallejo-born hip-hop artist LaRussell, who served as the Grand Marshal.
See the gallery below for highlights.
