Carolann Chambliss

Gourd Art

Seed to art. It’s often a year-long process of cultivating, curing, and cleaning a gourd before I match its shape and natural patterns with my chosen design. I am inspired by African mud-cloth patterns, Peruvian story-gourds, Native American patterns, Zentangle processes, and botanicals. After burning the pattern into the gourd, I paint it with translucent ink dyes – I don’t like to lose the natural color patterns on the gourd. I often carve elements and the finishing touches are an eclectic mix of found objects and nature’s artifacts. I completed a degree in Fine Art in 1980 and life quickly distracted me from the continued growth of my creative side. 20 or so years ago, I grew several hundred gourds on our farm, let them dry, bought a book on gourd art, and “the rest is history.” I occasionally take technique classes and feel a bit compelled to one day develop my own “signature style.” For now, I’m having a wonderful time playing, learning, creating, and occasionally teaching classes.

“For me, the gourd is not merely the medium that I use, but a genuine co-creator of the finished product. Working with organic materials such as gourds is a relational experience that is extremely important to what I do and how I create.”

Mission:

To frequently journey into the world of creativity
To embrace imperfections and relinquish control
To enjoy interactions and relationships developed along the way
To appreciate the artistic process as much as the art itself

Websites: https://www.gourdsgonewild.art/

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: facebook.com/GourdArtForSale