Meet Our Featured Artist
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Introducing Leanna Donald
Our Featured Artist for the summer 2025 issue, Leanna Donald of De Soto, Kansas, believes that everyone is born with an inherent urge to create. Whether that be with pen and paper, sundries from the pantry, or drills, saws, and the fall harvest, we all have the compulsion to make our visions come to life. Leanna’s winning entry was a gourd light whose flowers and butterflies beautifully captured the theme Color Statement. She has been entering The Gourd Magazine’s Crafting Contest since she first began creating gourd art. It wasn’t long before her work earned recognition. Her owl in flight, called “Silent Swoop,” earned 1st Place and was featured in the Spring 2018 issue of The Gourd Magazine. She still enjoys entering the quarterly contests and meeting the various challenges presented by each contest theme. Leanna discovered Gourd Art in 2017 when she met Graham Ottoson of Gourdlandia in Ithaca, New York, at an Artist’s Market event. That first meeting sparked a deep appreciation for this amazing, versatile gift from Mother Nature – the gourd! Since that first meeting Leanna has been educating herself on the variety of art that can be created with this ubiquitous plant. Leanna began taking classes at Gourdlandia and traveling to gourd festivals in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Arizona, and learning techniques from some very talented gourd artists. Soon she began to share her fascination with gourds by teaching classes, first in New York and later in Missouri and Kansas. Leanna holds a BA in Art and Design from Iowa State University. Gourds provide a perfect “canvas” for creating gourd art. Her designs reflect her penchant for the natural world. She is intrigued by the versatility of the gourd and enjoys exploring all the different things that can be created with them – musical instruments, sculptures, bowls, luminaries, and especially lights of all kinds! Leanna believes, “If you’re going to create art why not make it functional and not just a dust collector!” With her father’s help, Leanna created a studio in the lower level of her home. It features a full wall of cabinets and drawers for all her gourd supplies and a Formica work surface. Her father has always been a strong supporter of her artistic endeavors. The majority of Leanna’s recent pieces are lights, either pendant or table lights. They can be created using one vase gourd or two gourds, a vase gourd and bottle gourd, to create a shade and a base. A class at Gourdlandia, www.gourdlandia.com, provided an indispensable introduction to wiring a gourd lamp. After purchasing her pendant light, “Ditch Lily,” Alex & Lindsay Waller, owners of the new Force of Nature Brewing, approached Leanna to commission five pendant lights to hang over their bar in De Soto, KS. The lights enhance the atmosphere of the brewery where they create their beers with botanicals. The gourd lights elicit many comments from their customers and their bartenders love to tell them that they are made from gourds! When asked if she has a favorite piece of her gourd art, Leanna said that it is “Hobbs,” her armadillo. “The sculpture is made from seven separate gourds plus gourd shards that have been pieced together, wood burned and colored to replicate a realistic armadillo. I love the challenge of trying to create complex designs in my gourd art.” Over the years the tools she has come to rely on most when creating gourd art are her Micro-Pro Mastercarver and her Razertip pyrography pens. After moving back to the Midwest Leanna became a member of the Show-Me Gourd Society and has been on their Board as a Director for several years. She also manages the group’s Facebook and Instagram pages. She is looking forward to attending the annual SMGS Art Festival this summer which will be held June 28 & 29, in Lebanon, MO. Participating in De Soto’s Fall Fine Art Show in 2022, Leanna’s booth was chosen as the Best in Show for her gourd art. She was in competition with traditional art mediums like painting, ceramics, jewelry, and photography. The judge’s note said, “Leanna combines an impressive ability to create both sculpture, painting and drawing all in one, in her gourd art. Her sculptures are both functional and visually appealing. Much time and attention to detail is apparent. Impressive, beautiful work that expands a largely unknown medium.” For those who are new to gourd art Leanna recommends experimenting with various techniques such as carving, burning, pine-needle weaving, painting/staining, etc. and gravitating to what you enjoy the most. Take as many classes as you can to increase your knowledge, and don’t forget to have fun! Leanna’s studio is called Organic Visual Arts, https://organicvisualarts.com/. Follow her on both Facebook and Instagram. 
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