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Meet Gourd Miner Mama ANN MITCHELL
Meet the Gourd Club Coordinator
As a former art teacher and public school teacher, Ann discovered the tremendous possibilities gourds offered to the art world while attending a gourd festival at Zittel Farms near her home in Folsom, California. Armed with her bag of gourds and the only book she could find, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF GOURD CRAFT by Ginger Summit and Jim Widess (which she now affectionately calls her "Gourd Bible"), she started to play.Since no classes were available at that time and wanting to have a way of sharing ideas with other gourders, Roger Zittel suggested she start a gourd club at Zittel Farms. So, with the encouragement of her husband, Phil Scott, the club was born. Hence her name, Gourd Miner Mama, is fitting as the club, "Z" Gourd Miners, is now in its 5th year, has a statewide reputation for excellence and a membership of over 80 gourders. Learn more about this club on "Z" Gourd Miners Club Page.
Meet the Gourd Teacher and Author
Ann began teaching classes at Zittel Farms at the urging of Kent Zittel. She now oversees the ongoing classes at Zittel Farms, insuring that quality instructors and subject matter are presented regularly to meet the needs of the gourding public. See the current schedule of classes at Zittel Farms on the GOURD CLASSES page. Because Ann enjoys teaching and spreading the "gourd" word, she has been published in "The Golden Gourd", "The Gourd", and the "Sacramento Bee's California Life" magazine. She has just published a book with fellow gourder Kay Mackelburg entitled "THE ABSOLUTE BASICS, A Written Class for the Aspiring Gourd Crafter." (For ordering information, please check Contact Page on this site.)
Meet the Gourd Artist
Although Ann will occasionally display and sell her gourd art at galleries, she prefers presenting her gourds directly to the public at the local Folsom Sutter Street festivals in April and December, Zittel Farms Gourd Festival and by special order. This way, Ann can instruct the potential gourd art purchaser on the correct way to handle and care for gourd art and what to look for to get quality gourd art. Ann is also an active member of the Folsom Patrons of the Arts and is supporting their efforts to introduce gourd art to Folsom's school children. You can view a sample of her art in the PHOTO page of this site as well as in the book GOURD PYROGRAPHY by Jim Widess.
Meet the Gourd Festival Coordinator
Because Ann enjoys working with people and sharing her knowlege and love of gourds, she became more and more involved each year with the Zittel Farms gourd festival. She was the festival organizer for their 6th Annual West Coast Gourd Festival in September, 2000, which saw an attendance of over 15,000 and offered, for the first time under her direction, a day of specialized and streamlined gourd class.Ann currently is preparing for the 9th Annual West Coast Gourd Festival. Classes will be offered on Friday, September 26, 2003. The festival itself will be held on Saturday and Sunday, September 27 and 28, 2003. Check the Pre-Festival Classes page for complete information on the classes.
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