Canteen Gourds Heading South

"Running of the Gourds" Gourd Festival

February 12, 13, and 14, 2016

Pinal Fairgrounds

Case Grande, Arizona

http://www.wuertzfarm.com/gourd-festival.html

Big and Small

Big...

and small...

heading to Yucca Valley.

Next Show: Yucca Valley

Next Show: Artistic License Fair

https://www.facebook.com/artisticlicensefair 

Paint and Release

At the start of the summer I kept nagging my daughter to get rid of a pair of eight year old VANS.  When she finally did and I saw them in the trash, I became a little nostalgic (since she had them since 5th grade) and took them out of the bin.

 I felt so silly because now I had the ratty old shoes and didn't know what to do with them so finally I decided to paint them.  Since I started working with gourds I rarely paint on canvas.  When I do, it feels odd because I've gotten accustomed to working on a curved surface.

It was fun to paint again and when I finished I had no problem throwing away the shoes.  I see a whole series of paintings coming my way...perhaps a good way to get rid of things and get some painting practice in!

Artistic License Fair 2014

I will be carting my gourds to Estancia Park in Costa Mesa tomorrow and Saturday (site #46)...looks like very pleasant weather to stroll around, have lunch, and admire everyone's unique creativity!

Who's the Stiff?

I recently finished a gourd Sun Conure (parrot) for a former student. I've made birds before including a quail but each one seems to have it's own unique challenges.  With this one I was having balance issues and had to use a glue and sand mixture inserted into the "belly" to balance out the weight of the wings.

I thought it turned out pretty good until he sent me a picture of his pet parrot, Comet, next to the gourd parrot.  Well, mine looks pretty stiff compared to the real thing, but what I really love about this picture is Comet's expression!