Marianne Barnes, Gourd Artist, Basket Maker, and Teacher

Hi, I’m Marianne Barnes, also know as Maribasket. I have been working with gourds for the last 20 years. I have been a basket maker for 21 years and an art teacher in the public schools for thirty-eight years. I retired last year. I love the combination of baskets and gourd art. Texture is the core of my art. I work with natural and textural materials such as cedar and birch bark, sea grass, mohair and knobby yarns, pods, philodendron sheath, leather, etc. I also incorporate basketry by weaving on top of the gourd with an undulating weave that resembles hills and valleys. Recently I have been adding different techniques to enhance the gourd itself such as burning, painting, and carving. Many times I add a dream catcher or a tapestry weave on the front of the gourd.

I am a member of numerous guilds and associations including Upper SC Basketmakers Guild (charter member); Upstate Visual Arts Association; NC Basket Association; SC Gourd Society (charter member); NC Gourd Society, SC Gourd Society, and the American Gourd Society. I also teach basket and gourd classes at local and state workshops and conventions. I have a home studio where I teach classes too. I have been privileged to win many awards for my gourd art including “Best of Show” for a large gourd basket at Greenville’s Art in the Park at the SC Governors School for the Arts. I started a local gourd patch here in Greenville. We meet once a month to learn how to make gourd art and to share with each other. The link to the web site is here: Palmetto Gourd Patch. I was also juried into the SC Artisan Center in Walterboro, SC and the Foothills Artisan Center in Chesnee, SC.

I live in Greenville, SC and I am wife to Jim (who makes gourd birdhouses), mother, and grandmother/step grandmother of five. I am presently working on a book about weaving on top of gourds with Schiffer Publishing.