Yarnbombing

Another exciting interview is in the can! You may think I exaggerate when I call the interviews “exciting”, but it really has been cool and fascinating to talk to all of these different graffiti artists. Although the groups have some similarities, we have been struck by just how diverse the people are who are drawn to yarn graffiti.

This weekend Leanne and I talked to Kristin from the Chicago-based Micro-Fiber Militia. MFM is the first group we’ve talked to that works primarily in crochet; the rest of the taggers we’ve interviewed have been knitters. This choice may help to account for the impressive size of some of the MFM tags; the speed of crochet makes pieces like the fantastic bike rack cover above more feasible than they would be if they were knitted.

The members of this group work fairly independently, producing their tags separately and then contributing their photos to the group’s blog and Flickr stream.

We talked with Kristin about how her crocheted graffiti fits into her art practice. We queried her about her most over-the-top fantasy yarn graffiti projects, and about her sources of both inspiration and yarn. I particularly enjoyed hearing her talk about this spectacular piece by MFM member Timeline, which can be seen outside her favourite yarn shop, Loopy Yarns.

As any knitter or crocheter knows, something like this takes quite a lot of time to produce, and this piece discusses the time that passed and the things that happened while it was in progress. I am intrigued by its beautiful colour work, and by the glimpses of embroidery that are visible in the photo. I wish I could see it in person!

You can see blog entries about these tags (including larger versions of the photos) at the Micro-Fiber Militia site, here and here.

This post is long overdue – how did it get to be July already? The past few weeks have been spent tagging Vancouver (photographs coming soon, I promise), writing parts of the book, transcribing interviews, making our final pattern selections (still pending publisher’s approval – we will have those emails out shortly) and taking a few vacation days out to enjoy the summer. It is (finally) sunny here in this rainy part of the world.

Two weeks ago, Mandy and I had the great pleasure to interview Jan and Evelien of Knitted Landscape. As Jan and Evelien live in the Netherlands, we had to transverse a nine hour time change. We were just starting our days they were just entering Friday night. They were kind enough to talk to us about their artistic backgrounds, knitting techniques and what inspires them.

I’ve been a huge fan of Knitted Landscape since I stumbled across their website a year ago. Their tags resemble organic forms. Wooly mushrooms, knit flowers and fuzzy rocks: some of these pieces look so natural that you have to look twice to ensure yourself that the work has actually been made by a person.

Jan described the act of tagging as having the ability to change your surroundings – to make the world look different to others and different to yourself. Take a look at their photographs, and I think that you’ll agree that their pieces achieve this

Knitted Landscape has also gone public – having several art shows in the Netherlands. Evelein told us that for one of their shows they knitted traffic signs to direct people to the gallery. You can see their recent work at this link: http://www.knittedlandscape.com/knittedlandscapenews.html. Check out the waterlilies in the pond. They are so beautiful.

Tagging, as Jan and Evelien describe it, is about creating something that is purely about delight. Often they embark on a tagging mission without knowing their destination – they just leave their pieces where it feels right, and where it will be a welcome surprise to pedestrians.

Jan and Evelein post photographs of their own tags and encourage others to contribute images. Visit the Knitted Landscape website and consider joining their project.

It has been a cold and rainy week here in Vancouver. The sun came out for a few brief hours yesterday, and I managed to tag a crosswalk buzzer near St. Paul’s Hospital on Davie and Thurlow. Just as we had the camera ready – this woman came along with a pink shirt and pushed the button. She matched my tag perfectly. I love moments like this.

Mandy and I were lucky enough to talk to Magda Sayeg, the founder of Knitta, on Friday afternoon. Magda was about to open a bookstore in Austin, Texas – but managed to chat to us in the busy hours before her grand opening. We talked about many things; including how knit graffiti has spread throughout the world, the workshops that Magda now runs, and how Knitta crew has evolved. The interview will be a great addition to our book. Magda was very generous with her opinions and her time. She is an inspiration. I can’t wait to see what she gets up to next.

I am so excited! Mandy and I have an interview with the founder of KnittaPlease today – the original knit graffiti crew.