I-69 Heritage Corridor - Allen County
decorated gourds
 
  A colorful array of gourds hand carved and painted by Patria. Some of her gourds are imbued with personal meaning, such as the one on the upper left of this image, which depicts women honoring veterans and relatives in a Gourd Dance.
  -- Photo by Jim Diveney
Listen to Patria describe gourd history
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Patria Smith -- Gourd art (continued)

Historically, decorated gourds were used mainly for ceremonial purposes. Patria has been approached to create these important objects in exchange for tobacco, a respected gesture of appreciation and form of payment among Native Americans. She doesn’t charge money for this type of gourd, and uses the tobacco in prayer before beginning work on the gourd.

Listen to Patria:

Describe the gourd dance Listen to Patria Smith  (transcript)

Describe gourd history Listen to Patria Smith  (transcript)

Describe the uses of tobacco Listen to Patria Smith  (transcript)