*Refers to the latest 2 years of stltoday.com stories. Cancel anytime. The gloriously carved and masterfully painted vases, lampshades, sculptures, wind chimes and more that self-taught artist Janet ...

You know what I’m talking about — the strange, bumpy things you see every fall. They’re piled high at all the stores, squatting on front porches, or sitting in a bowl your friend insists is “autumnal.

Wang Dekun, a folk artist from Xiajin county, Shandong province, has a deep passion for gourd pyrography and is recognized as an inheritor of this art in his region. With his skilled hands, he ...