I am trying to bring this year-long knitting project in to some form of completion. I have many more ideas that I would like to create, but the time that this type of work requires is kind of absurd. Some pieces in this collection took upwards of 30 hours. I didn't get much painting done while I was deep in to this project...in fact I didn't do much of anything except knit. I was hurriedly knitting section after section because I was so curious how it would turn out. Then when a piece was finished, I would excitedly jump in to the next while everything I had learned from the last was fresh in my mind.
The project was an incredible learning experience in several ways. As I brought these familiar characters from my paintings and drawings in to 3-Dimension I better understood them-How light and shadows fall on them, How solid and balanced they have to be to realistically stand on their own, how they relate to one another. The pieces have such personality and I think these sculptural renderings may be a more natural, more expressive way to present them.
I really advanced my knitting skills as well but, beyond that, sharpened an ability to understand shapes in terms of the many planes that make up a surface. To make these shapes, I had to individually build all these tiny, colliding planes with their subtle differences and I had to do it in a way that led seamlessly from one to another.
I find the whole concept kind of mind-boggling. Knitting on a circular needle produces rows of slip knots that spiral upward like a coil pot. Knitting on straight needles stacks flat rows built in alternating directions, back and forth like a typewriter. I alternated between these types of needles almost constantly and also needed double-pointed needles for a good deal of the work, as I encountered many openings too small to maneuver through with circular needles.
I wanted the works to be all knit and no sewing, so I had to create the shapes in one flowing piece. I felt that to knit sections separately and later attach them, causing seams and stitches, would bring to mind the process of me making the piece and that the power of the shape might be diminished.
I became very interested in the concept of a large structure of slip knots. There were some pieces that I spent 20 hours or so on before I decided to scrap the idea and reuse the materials. I dropped the stitches off my needles and lightly pulled the string of yarn. In a few moments the piece unraveled and there was nothing left but kinks in the yarn.
Not all of the knit works are photographed yet because they are somewhat difficult to display at this point. From the beginning, I had planned to build a removable support system as I knit(in some cases balloons and in some wire) and then use a fabric stiffener to support the piece enough to remove the armature and leave 100% yarn. The pieces that are stretched over wood frames are pretty well supported as is, but others have very little strength on their own.
I need to knit some things to sacrifice to experimental stiffening so I can find the correct method and materials to preserve these forms. Please let me know if you have any experience with this type of thing. I have held off on it because I am very concerned about losing the softness of the yarn.
Below are some images of knit works and the origins of the shapes:
The project was an incredible learning experience in several ways. As I brought these familiar characters from my paintings and drawings in to 3-Dimension I better understood them-How light and shadows fall on them, How solid and balanced they have to be to realistically stand on their own, how they relate to one another. The pieces have such personality and I think these sculptural renderings may be a more natural, more expressive way to present them.
I really advanced my knitting skills as well but, beyond that, sharpened an ability to understand shapes in terms of the many planes that make up a surface. To make these shapes, I had to individually build all these tiny, colliding planes with their subtle differences and I had to do it in a way that led seamlessly from one to another.
I find the whole concept kind of mind-boggling. Knitting on a circular needle produces rows of slip knots that spiral upward like a coil pot. Knitting on straight needles stacks flat rows built in alternating directions, back and forth like a typewriter. I alternated between these types of needles almost constantly and also needed double-pointed needles for a good deal of the work, as I encountered many openings too small to maneuver through with circular needles.
I wanted the works to be all knit and no sewing, so I had to create the shapes in one flowing piece. I felt that to knit sections separately and later attach them, causing seams and stitches, would bring to mind the process of me making the piece and that the power of the shape might be diminished.
I became very interested in the concept of a large structure of slip knots. There were some pieces that I spent 20 hours or so on before I decided to scrap the idea and reuse the materials. I dropped the stitches off my needles and lightly pulled the string of yarn. In a few moments the piece unraveled and there was nothing left but kinks in the yarn.
Not all of the knit works are photographed yet because they are somewhat difficult to display at this point. From the beginning, I had planned to build a removable support system as I knit(in some cases balloons and in some wire) and then use a fabric stiffener to support the piece enough to remove the armature and leave 100% yarn. The pieces that are stretched over wood frames are pretty well supported as is, but others have very little strength on their own.
I need to knit some things to sacrifice to experimental stiffening so I can find the correct method and materials to preserve these forms. Please let me know if you have any experience with this type of thing. I have held off on it because I am very concerned about losing the softness of the yarn.
Below are some images of knit works and the origins of the shapes:
Organic Periscope
Moss Muffin
3-Tier Stump
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