Congratulations to Bobby Maida and company in getting the Giglio Festival up and going again for the 10th time since its return in 2000. The streets of Pleasant Avenue were filled with family and friends who returned to the old Italian Harlem neighborhood once more to celebrate a tradition that has been around for a millenia. The Giglio this year was a little more minimalist than in the past and one can see that it basically was a giant Corinthian column, with an flame spouting out at the pointed tip. The reverse side is hollow as one can see in the fourth photo down but it takes an army of Giglio Boys to lift the entire six-story sculpture down the street. As we mentioned in the past, Italian East Harlem was ten times larger than downtown's Little Italy and most were driven out when the housing projects were built on former neighborhood tenement blocks. Yet, Pleasant Avenue somehow remained untouched and still looks the same as it did back then. See more old Italian East Harlem Giglio photos in our past post:
LINK. Look out for more photos on the Harlem Bespoke facebook site:
LINK. Photos by Ulysses
Congratulations to Bobby Maida and company in getting the Giglio Festival up and going again for the 10th time since its return in 2000. The streets of Pleasant Avenue were filled with family and friends who returned to the old Italian Harlem neighborhood once more to celebrate a tradition that has been around for a millenia. The Giglio this year was a little more minimalist than in the past and one can see that it basically was a giant Corinthian column, with an flame spouting out at the pointed tip. The reverse side is hollow as one can see in the fourth photo down but it takes an army of Giglio Boys to lift the entire six-story sculpture down the street. As we mentioned in the past, Italian East Harlem was ten times larger than downtown's Little Italy and most were driven out when the housing projects were built on former neighborhood tenement blocks. Yet, Pleasant Avenue somehow remained untouched and still looks the same as it did back then. See more old Italian East Harlem Giglio photos in our past post: LINK. Look out for more photos on the Harlem Bespoke facebook site: LINK. Photos by Ulysses
This was, as promised, a wonderful event and a very cool part of Harlem. And great photos -- the top two are an inspired idea!
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