I started dabbling in gourd
art in 1999 while living in Texas but didn't get serious about
working with gourds until retiring from my day job.
Working with gourds gives me
the opportunity to do so much with them. The best part is that I am
now growing my own gourds. It's great fun starting them from seeds
and watching them grow. Once the gourds are dried and cleaned I start
working with them and that's when the fun begins.
Like most of my work, I
choose my canvas (shape, size, etc of gourd) and then figure out what it
should be. Sometimes I start with an idea and then look through my
gourds for just the right one to make it work. Designing a gourd
doesn't just happen, it's a work in progress and it evolves as I work.
Depending on the idea, I
might do some carving, cutting and shaping with a jig saw or use Inlace
Liquid Inlay. Sometimes I do pyrography
by itself but most of the time I combine pyrography with other mediums
such as acrylic-based paints, gourd ink dyes. shimmer, etc. I enjoy experimenting with leather, natural fiber, beads,
feathers and other embellishments. I find that working with gourds
gives me much more freedom to create and explore new things than
pyrography or painting by themselves, so perhaps this is why I enjoy
working with gourds so much.
I am fortunate to have spent
a life of traveling, either for work or for pleasure but I never leave
home without a camera or two. Most of the gourd designs are inspired by places
I've been and places I've lived, past or present. Most gourds start
out with just an idea and evolve as I work on them. I might start
with an idea, start working on it and change the overall design in
midstream because I had a "brain fart". I never quite know what will
happen until it happens! I guess that's called artistic temperament.
Many of the gourds I did
while living in Texas were pre-digital camera and I was unable to get good
copies to post them on our website so most of the gourds seen here are
brand new.
Now that I am retired and
have a bit more time on my hands I have backed off on teaching a bit and
gotten in to what I really love...actually doing the art rather than
teaching it!
Art Shows
I have entered juried shows
and competition for my woodburnings for many years and have won numerous
awards but I never had the nerve to enter any of my gourds to juried shows
or competition...until now.
I entered several pieces to
a juried art show, Art from the Vine at the Arts Alliance Gallery in
Albuquerque being held from October - November, 2009. I was thrilled
to receive my notice saying that three of my gourds were accepted into the
show.
WHY IS GOURD ART SO
EXPENSIVE
That's a great question and let me give you some idea of what is involved
in gourd art.
1. First I have to plant seeds and of course say lots of prayers.
2. Gourds require a lot of water and fertilizer
3. Once they start growing and flowers develop some growers, like myself,
hand pollinate. This means I have to go out and individually pollinate
all female flowers then put a bag on top for 2 days to ensure it takes.
4. Guard against pests, deer & squirrels.
5. Once the growing season is over gourds need to dry out which could take
six (6) months or more. Part of this drying time is on the vine and the
remainder of the time done in drying bins which allow air flow. This
requires time, patience and lots of room.
6. Now
comes the fun. Removing the skin and cleaning the outside of the gourd is
the hardest and least fun part of working with gourds. Regardless of what
type of gourd art I am creating I MUST clean the surface of the gourd.
First I soak the gourd in warm, soapy water. Then the best
part....scrubbing. Oh, yes this is truly the best part...NOT!
7. If cutting the gourd open (for bowls and vases) we're now adding on a
lot more work. I use a mini jig saw to cut the top open and each gourd
must be thoroughly cleaned and sanded.
8. Once completely clean I paint and seal the inside.
9. The design is sketched on the surface of the gourd and I can now, burn,
paint, dye, carve, inlay or a combination of all of them. This process
could take anywhere from 30 minutes to several days to complete the
project.
10. Protective varnish is applied.
11. Beads and embellishments are sometimes added at this point.
I hope that this will help you understand and appreciate the time and work
involved in creating gourd art. Most artists, including me frequently end
up working for minimum wage so please don't ask me if I will take less for
my time and effort.
MEMBERSHIPS
I am a member of the
American Gourd Society, New Mexico Gourd Society, Arizona Gourd Society,
Ohio Gourd Society, Washington Gourd Society, Idaho Gourd Society
and the Texas Gourd Society.
If you would like
to view more of my work, including more samples of her work in
progress, please go to our photo album at:
www.picturetrail.com/nedradenison
How you can purchase one of
Nedra's original gourds.
If you would like to purchase one
of Nedra's original gourds or would like to discuss a commission,
please contact Nedra
Copyright Information
All of Nedra's artwork
is copyright protected. It may not be copied, reproduced, used as a
pattern, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means
without the prior permission of the artist.
