About Me
I think everyone is born with an inherent urge to create. Whether that be with pen and paper, sundries from your pantry, or drills, saws, and the fall harvest, we all have the compulsion to make our visions come to life. I have a myriad of interests: drawing, painting, photography, baking, and cake design along with an obsession with gourd art! What a intriguing natural wonder to work with and so many things you can do to them - paint them, dye them, cut them, burn them, and the list goes on. I've collaborated and learned from fellow gourd artisans across the country and continue to explore the possibilities of what can be done with them. They are limitless when you let your imagination run free.
Affliations
Show-Me Gourd Society Board Director – 2019 – current
Show-Me Gourd Society Social Media Coordinator - 2021 - current
New York State Gourd Society Board Member 2016-2019
Pennsylvania Gourd Society Member 2018-2019
American Gourd Society Member 2016 – current
De Soto KS Art Council Member 2021 – current
Experience
American Gourd Society Judge
Show Me Gourd Art Festival, April 2022
Show Me Gourd Society - Workshop Instructor
Colored Pencil, February 2022 Lees Summit MO
Show Me Gourd Society - Workshop Instructor
Pendant Light, May 2020 Lees Summit MO
New York State Gourd Society - Workshop Instructor
Gourd Tattooing, March 2018, Binghamton NY
New York State Gourd Society - Workshop Instructor
Snowmen Ornaments, December 2017, Brooktondale NY
Features
Summer 2022 AGS Gourd Magazine
Third Place Crafting Contest “Sculpture”: Hobbs
Summer 2021 AGS Gourd Magazine
Featured Article - Tutorial: Pendant Light
Spring 2021 AGS Gourd Magazine
Featured Article - Tutorial: Faux Gourd Tattooing
Spring 2021 AGS Gourd Magazine
Second Place, Crafting Contest “The Rescued Gourd”: Cozy in the Chestnut
Fall 2020 AGS Gourd Magazine
Second Place, Crafting Contest Inks, Dyes and Watercolors: Garden Par
Spring 2018 AGS Gourd Magazine
Featured Artist on AmericanGourdSociety.org
Summer 2017 AGS Gourd Magazine
Third Place, Crafting Contest, Gourd Masks: Dreamwalker
Winter 2017 AGS Gourd Magazine
First Place Gourd Crafting Contest, Gourd Sculpture: Silent Swoop
Awards
Show Me Gourd Art Festival 2022
First Place (Masters) Pyrography with Color: Sunrise on the SerengetiFirst Place (Masters) Jewelry: Claret Cup Cactus
First Place (Masters) Color Technique: Atlas Moth
First Place (Masters) Combo of Techniques: Ditch Lily
Second Place (Masters) Creatures of Land & Sea: Drakaina
Second Place (Masters) Instrumental: Starry Night Down Under
Third Place (Masters) Lamp: Sunflower Salutation
Show Me Gourd Art Festival 2019
First Place (Advanced) Lamp: Into the ForestFirst Place (Advanced) Wearable: Morning Dew Clematis
First Place (Advanced) Fantasy: Dreamwalker
First Place (Advanced) Colored Pencil: Sunflowers
Second Place (Advanced) Gourd Doll: Sunflower Goddess
Second Place (Advanced) Sculpture: Silent Swoop
Pennsylvania Gourd Gathering 2018
First Place and Best of Division (Intermediate) Sculpture: Silent SwoopFirst Place (Intermediate) Mixed Media: Mr. Sonny and the Prickly Pear
First Place (Intermediate) Filigree: Honey Locust lamp