Community and Informative Series
From the April 2008 issue of Alabama Living magazine

Article by Kay Marshall
Alabama Living Field Editor

For many people, gourds are not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about Fine Art. As a member of the cucumber family of plants, gourds are also a cousin to squash and pumpkins. Southerners commonly see gourds used as cute ghosts or Santa’s for seasonal displays, or as a string of white-washed birdhouses that entice Purple Martins to nest. But these three-dimensional natural canvases serve a different purpose for Missy Miles, of Wayside, Alabama.
Miles sees gourds as a medium to express her love of history, nature, and her personal philosophy through the creative manipulation of paint, sculpting, and pyrography (wood-burning). In doing so, she turns this humble vegetable into a much-desired and collectible work of art.
When you first experience Miles’, work you will notice that she encourages the viewer to embrace the gourds shape and texture. Then, before you know it, you will be pulled in by the vivid imagery of nature, historical icons, and the intricate carvings that are a signature of her work.
Most appealing - and award-winning - is her series of politically themed gourds with a rainbow-bright, hippy-happiness that creates, for the viewer, a sense of animation through use of paint, and an illusion of depth created by the carving and pyrography. One can’t resist the urge to pick them up and follow the design as it winds around the gourd telling its story, or expressing an opinion. You will begin to see the gourd, perhaps, as Miles intends... as an organic, living reminder of our past, and a not-so-subtle warning about our future.
“I like to inspire people to think about our world and some of the issues we face today,” Miles said.
“One of my favorite pieces encourages people to support art education in our schools. I know that one reason I’m doing art today is due to the art education I had as a child,” she said.

Creating art from gourds hasn’t always been her bag. In fact, her work background includes a seven year stint at Lowe’s as an electrical contractor. Having a degree in Interior Design kept her art interests alive, but it wasn’t until Valentine’s Day of 2005 that Missy Miles met and fell in love with gourds. As the story goes, her husband, Tommy, decided that a truckload of gourds would be the perfect romantic gift. While most women might not agree, for Miles, it was a hit. “Tommy knew I loved working with my hands and he had an opportunity to get those gourds at a great price. I’d never worked with anything other than driftwood - for my furniture pieces - so gourds, as an art medium, was a new idea. But I immediately became hooked on them, and that was one of the best Valentine’s gifts I’ve ever received,” she said, smiling broadly.

With that first truckload of gourds long gone, today Miles chooses many of her gourds from local area growers, but loves the Cantina gourds of Southern California because of their consistency in quality, color, and shape. She also grows some of her own gourds and stated that she was grateful to people in this area for being kind enough to donate gourds as well.

Miniature gourds are a new fascination for Miles. These ultra-small objects are painstakingly painted, wood-burned, and sculpted into either stand-alone pieces or necklaces. “One of the things I like about gourds is that each one has its own personality, and I have to stay flexible with my design to see what best works for each type,” she said. Often a gourd fits a certain idea she is exploring, while other times the gourd takes the lead and the art flows from there. “Sometimes I just dig in without plans or purpose and sees where it takes me,” she said. Whatever the creative force, she begins the process at her home, through sketches, and then works on her prepared gourds at her studio. You will find happiness, natural beauty, textural deliciousness, and refreshing and thought-provoking imagery in the work of this Wayside artist.

Miles’ work includes commission-based driftwood furniture and Native American inspired paintings. She shows at the Cullman Gourd Society Festival and the Jerry Brown Arts Festival yearly. She is a member of the Alabama Gourd Society and is happy to promote gourd art through public-speaking, shows, and demonstrations. You can contact this local artist by email at missy@organicvessels.com.

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