Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Stream of consciousness knitting

I have been trying to think of a way to describe what I call 'stream of consciousness' knitting. 

I first used the term to describe the way I was knitting the abstract uterus which eventually became one of the soft sculptures in 'All the babies I might have had':


Knitted uterus, 2011, wool
Work in progress
The knitted web was 165cm in diameter at it's widest point 



                                                        Knitted uterus, 2011, detail 


I used double pointed needles and knitted a series of holes radiating out from the central point. Knitting with only one colour emphasised the process and made me very aware of what I was doing;  I had no pattern, a few rules, made decisions as I knitted and the design developed as the piece grew. The structure mirrored the process and was organic, cellular, reminding me of binary fission.


        

 Knitted uterus, 2011, wool
The knitting was 165cm in diameter at it's widest point before felting.   

Another important aspect of the 'stream of consciousness' for me is where I knit. 

Because I like to create large pieces, I knit wherever and whenever I can; in pubs and cafes, in queues, on the beach, on buses and trains, at festivals and concerts and even on the ski slope! The response to my public knitting is astonishing and provokes many conversations. 

The fact that this particular piece is web like in structure is pertinent. I have researched the work of other artists and ideas around the memory of cloth and I like to think of my knitting as a ‘memory catcher’, with those encounters and conversations somehow becoming part of its fabric. Knitting a uterus in public as a response to issues around infertility is inevitably very poignant. 

I am also interested in the links with women in mythology and textile processes -The Fates spinning the thread of life,  Penelope weaving by day and unravelling by night etc- and the power that those processes bring.


All the babies I might have had, June 2011, detail
Diptych of 2 soft sculptures
Hand knitted, felted abstract uterus suspended in front of a canvas pregnant torso

I realise in retrospect that I have knitted as a stream of consciousness for many years. Knitting is very repetitive, stitch by stitch and row by row, and without the constraints of a pattern I find that I very quickly become absorbed in the flow of the piece. I have just this week discovered Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and his studies of happiness and creativity and feel that what he describes as flow resonates strongly with my 'stream of consciousness' knitting. 


Table runner, July 2011
Work in progress
Bamboo



Psychedelic sunset wall hanging 2010, detail

Hand knitted felt diptych
                                                             100cm x 255cm approx.


Wavy cardigan Aug 2008, detail 

Hand knitted in cotton




Waves vessel, 2011

Hand knitted  felt



Red tree trunk sculpture 2010
Hand knitted felt



Ripples, 2010, detail

Hand knitted felt




Patchwork fields, 2008, detail

Hand knitted felt appliquéd onto machine knitted felt and stuffed



Seascape wall hanging, detail, before felting 2009

Hand knitted waves



Friday, 8 July 2011

3D knitting and soft sculpture

                                                                           
                                                                            Beach


                                                                          
                                                                         Waves


                                                                            
                                                                          Fields


                                                                        
                                                                         Sunset


I'm planning to revisit my experiments with 3D hand knitted felt over the summer. See some more photos of my work at http://www.flickr.com/photos/25094859@N05/sets/72157627116070048/
I want to see if it's possible to create larger sculptural work in felted knitting. Here are two of my recent experiments:


                                                  
                                                   Red tree trunk , knitted felt June 2010


The design was based on the red bark of a Chinese birch tree. It was knitted with circular needles and I was very pleased that once it was felted it was free standing!



                                                      Sea vessel, knitted felt April 2011


I am intrigued by the vivid and changing colours of the sea and have tried to capture them using various media over the years. I knitted this with circular and double pointed needles. It is also free standing. Both are about 20cm tall.


For some reason I like the challenge of a self supporting structure but I found it interesting using tension to create form with felted knitting for my recent installation, 'All the babies I might have had':


 All the babies I might have had June 2011, diptych of soft sculptures, felted knitting, canvas, zip


It was very time consuming to set up but very effective! 


It was also very thought provoking.