I was born in Evansville, Indiana, and spent most of my summers with my grandparents outside of Central City, Kentucky. Art was always my
passion even as a small child; I loved drawing horses and fashion.
Strange combination I know, but I couldn't decide if I was a tomboy
or all feminine and Frilly. My grandfather was very supportive of my artwork and would walk me down the lane to look at the neighbor's horses. He would spend hours helping me with my little sketches and encouraging me in all my efforts. I never lost my passion for art as I grew up. Besides my grandfather, I was mostly encouraged by two great art teachers in high school: Mrs. Nelly and Mr. Sneathin.

I discovered gourd art in 2000 while on a shopping trip to Michael's
Craft Store. My shopping buddy showed me a paint book with the cutest Santa's painted on something called a gourd. Hmmm... seems like I remember my grandfather using something called a gourd as a water dipper. I love painting Santa's and using unusual surfaces so I just had to find a gourd. A friend found two bottle gourds at a roadside stand for me, and that was all it took. I'm addicted! The possibilities are endless with this wonderful surface provided by nature. I also discovered, on the
Internet, J K Stacy Designs and the Gourd Patch, soon after finishing
my first gourd project. In these sites, many wonderful artists are
willing to share their knowledge and talents with beginners, who have so
many questions.

I enjoy working with acrylics, watercolors, leather dyes, carving, and
inlay. I also like to incorporate sculpting by using air dry or polymer
clay with this wonderful surface.



LaVonne Hall
http://www.picturetrail.com/lavonne102
lhgourds@earthlink.net