Thursday, July 30, 2009

Hello Web World! Welcome to my Artistic Journey


Hello to all,


I want to introduce myself. I am the creator of Gourds & Gatherings. Welcome to my own little world of whimsey where my imagination comes alive with decorative painting and sculpting on gourds, canvas, paper maché, fabric, clay and wood.


I am a passionate artist whose love of the holidays has led me into a whimsical world of holiday design. I am a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and have over 25 years of design experience. A full-time career woman and working mom, I always make time to pursue my "addiction" to craft designing.

I began my design career at an early age and since then my designs can be found in many private collections throughout the United States and are featured in Ohio art shows. My whimsical designs feature original vintage-inspired artwork. However, my most popular designs have been inspired by my own imagination or experiences. Through my work, I try to capture the whimsical side of the holidays.


My absolute favorite time of the year is the fall. Who doesn't love the crisp autumn air, playing dress up, dancing witches, lighted pumpkins, skeletons, pumpkin-carving, and trick-or-treating.

Those childhood memories of homemade costumes, candied apples and carmel corn surely puts a smile on my face, how about yours?


I consider fall the prelude to the best holiday ever...Christmas! The winter months come alive with my introduction of Santa’s, snow fairies, leprechauns and of course, snowmen. The spring and summer months are often filled with designing for future fall and winter festivals, but on occasion Uncle Sam or an Easter bunny or two may appear. As a child, some of my favorite memories were of creating costumes for Halloween and decorating for Christmas.


My artwork is an addiction of sorts. I can not remember a time that I haven’t been creating one thing or another. I love to experiment with many different techniques and mediums, but in later years have really enjoyed the use of gourds in my designs. By blending the unique characteristics of the gourd with the use of color, fabrics, clay and fibers creates the unexpectability in my work. Each piece generates the ideas and inspiration for the next one. Gourds are a wonderful source for diversification and challenge in my artwork.


For over a several decades I have been creating OOAK uniquely designed items for exhibit or sale in the local arts & craft market. I am currently working on expanding my business by introducing a blog, website and writing my first book featuring over 25 new unique designs and patterns with the hopes that it will soon be published.


If you have any questions regarding any of my designs, please feel free contact me by e-mail at lynlockwood@aol.com. Please note these products are for decorative purposes only! Not intended as toys for children. Mass production, photocopying and all other types of reproduction is strictly prohibited.