I am growing gourds and making gourd art.

Seeds and Sounds is a rhizomatic extension of my sound project Kalimbrrd. This is a cyclical, multi-year project in which I am learning to grow hardshell gourds (Lagenaria siceraria) from seed and craft them into musical instruments, sculptures, and lights. I’ve partnered with Garfield Community Farm and Penn Forest Natural Burial Park to grow gourds.

 In my studio, I experiment with gourd forms, starting with the “sasa” or “shekere,” a beaded gourd instrument my West African aunties played in church. I explore the gourd with different scales and functions: as jewelry, ornaments, handheld instruments, and sound sculptures.