"The work of Valerie M. Milner is the art of crafting fine gourd masks and gourd vessels in her signature southwest style. Valerie is a talented artist in many mediums, but her gift is in transforming raw, agricultural grade gourds into beautiful works of art.
Valerie's work stands out on its own because of the wide range of
finishes and textures she has learned to draw from the raw gourd's
wood-like skins. The interesting variables found in the gourds themselves,
and her inventive techniques; assure that no two pieces can ever be the same.
The patterns carved into both her vessels and masks are original,
although many are influenced by the indigenous art forms of her adopted Southwest. Her gourd bowls are sometimes influenced by the remarkable pottery of Mata Ortiz, where she made her home before returning to the states to focus on her current work. Her masks carry sublime expressions, and wear fine feather headdesses and precious stones. Her artwork as a whole exhibits a fine balance of elegance and honesty. These are qualities easily seen in the artist herself, which can be appreciated after watching her at work. The meticulous and strenuous labors she must undertake to create each artifact by hand may not be obvious, but the art she creates is hard to overlook.
Valerie's work can be found in galleries throughout the southwest. Recently, her work was included in the Neo-Mimbreno show at the Silver City Museum, and is sought out by some of the region's most well respected galleries and collections."
from an article by Jaron Sampson
November 2003
Valerie was born and raised in New York City. After an early graduation, she headed West, and since then has lived in Montana, The Pacific Northwest, Mexico's Casas Grandes, and is now settled in the Southwest. Prior to leaping into the art business over twenty years ago, she worked as a music teacher, a railroad gandy-dancer, and a restaurateur. Valerie enjoys breeding songbirds, painting and writing, and spending time with her children.
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