Native American Style and Southwest Gourd Art - Gourds Art with Southwest Designs
Unique hand-made gourd art in native american style and southwest designs made by Nedra Denison
From the very first moment I arrived in New Mexico over 25 years ago it felt like home. My mother was convinced that I was born in the wrong part of the country and that I belonged in New Mexico. I lived here for several years before my job transferred me elsewhere and while it was a great career opportunity I Knew I was going to miss New Mexico. I swore that I would return and while it took me about 18 years I am finally home for good. The very first words out of my friend's mouth when we met again for the first time in 18 years was, "welcome home".
My art has always been inspired by the southwest, even as a child, and perhaps it is because it's just in my blood and always has been. Long before I ever heard of New Mexico I was drawing and painting southwestern scenes. It seemed natural that when I began working on gourds in 1999 while living in Texas that my first gourd was done in a native american style design.
These are some recent pieces I have made with a southwest touch!
Copyright Information
All of my 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.
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"Dream Catcher" The vase was cut out and the inside was painted and sealed. I removed the original beads and feathers from the dream catcher and used my own to coordinate with my overall color scheme. The design along the top edge was sketched and burned. The body of the gourd was stained with gourd dye inks and the edge trim painted with metallic paint. The gourd was sealed with a matte finish and then the Dream catcher was laced into the front hole. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 10" high Price: $100.00 |
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Bowl with lid on and the inside and another side view.
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Another side view and photo of the gourd at the Belen Art League show w/Ribbon
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"Zuni Bears" This covered bowl was cut out with the intention of creating a lidded bowl. It is an original design and was one of those creations that evolved as I went along. The inside lid, bowl and edge trim were painted black. Alan carved a Zuni Bear Fetish as a handle for the lid and the edging was inlaid with turquoise cabochon's. I decided to carry the Zuni bear theme Zuni bear theme around the body of the bowl. I sketched four bears, then burned and painted each in different color combinations and texture using flat and metallic acrylic paint and shimmers. I opted to leave the background of the gourd natural to create more contrast against the bears and trim. It was sealed inside and outside with a satin finish and then embellished the lid with some small accent feathers. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 9" wide x 8 1/2" high (w/o handle) Price: $125.00 |
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"Petroglyph Bowl" This is an original design and is the first project since my two hand surgeries. Two days out of the cast and I have begun my new journey. I used Sepia gourd dye ink on the surface and used ivory paint mixed with the same dye ink to paint the inside of the bowl. The design was roughly sketched on the outside of the bowl and then carved. I decided to try something different by carrying the southwest design inside the bowl. I cut out and applied fabric with coordinating colors and designs inside the bowl to pull it together and give it a more finished look. The edge of the gourd is trimmed with sea grass and embellished with a pewter button, beads and feathers. It is sealed with a matte finish for a more natural look. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 7" high and 9" wide Price: $150.00 |
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"Night of the Iguana's" This is an original design using one of my favorite subjects. The gourd was carved on top and cleaned out. The design was roughly sketched and then burned. The background was "punched" with shimmer opaque bronze and then gold translucent. The iguana's were done using shimmer opaque and translucent and some texture was added by "punching" the color to create the "skin". Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 7 1/2" high and 9" wide SOLD |
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"Petroglyph Vase" This gourd is an original design that was carved to create the illusion of rock carvings (Petroglyph). Because this gourd had so much "figuring" on the shell I decided to leave it "au naturale" rather than paint or stain it. The designs were carved and then the rim was trimmed with leather lacing and embellished with a slice of a deer antler, silver cone and feathers. The carved designs were inspired by Petroglyph found in NW New Mexico. The inside is painted black. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 11" high Price: $150.00 |
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"Arrowhead Gourd" Sponge painted with two shades of red gourd dye inks blended together. The top of the gourd is woven with sea grass, wrapped with artificial sinew and adorned with an stone arrowhead. The gourd is sealed with a matte finish. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 9" wide x 6 1/2" high SOLD |
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"Santa Fe Steps" This bowl was inspired by many of the recurring themes throughout New Mexico. The "step" design was carved and the inside of the bowl was painted black. The background of the gourd was colored with dye inks. The feathers were burned then painted and shimmer added to enhance the feather. The southwest design around the middle of the gourd was burned and then colored with shimmer. Sealed with a satin finish. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 11" wide x 7" high Price: $150.00 |
These are photos of the gourd burned but without any color added |
These are photos of the gourd finished
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"The Ancients" This gourd was a "design as you go" project! Each set of "ancients" evolved as I worked. I had the overall idea in my mind but created the individual robes as I worked. The background was painted and a translucent bronze shimmer was dabbed on over the paint. Each figure was done using a variety of medium including dye inks, both regular and metallic, a variety of shimmers for added texture and effect and paint. The gourd is trimmed with suede leather, beads and feathers. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 9" high Price: $150.00 |
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Small Petroglyph Bowl Original design based on photos I recently took during visits to El Morrow and the Petroglyph National Monument in New Mexico. Pyrography with no color added, trimmed with pig skin, leather lacing and pony bead accents. Sealed with a matte finish. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 7" wide x 3 3/4" high Price: $50.00 |
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"Echo Gecko" The bowl was carved and the inside painted black. The background of the bowl is sponge painted in layers using six different colors of shimmers. The gecko's were painted with black gourd dye ink and then colored with shimmer. Metallic in the glazes and opulence do not show up as well in photos. Sealed with a satin finish. Signed by the artist. Measures approx. 7 1/2" diameter x 6" high SOLD |
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"Southwest Steps" Original design. Carved, burned and painted with acrylic paints. Signed by the artist Measures approx. 3" tall Price: $45.00 |
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Mimbres Bowl Gourd This was the first gourd I ever did. It is an original design of New Mexico mimbres style designs. It is done on a raw gourd with no color added and is done entirely in pyrography. It is sealed with a matte finish to give it a more natural appearance. Signed by the artist SOLD |
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