A few months ago I saw a sign at reception at the Bath School of Art and Design requesting people to knit a square (or two), and leave them in the glass vase to be later used in a collaboration project by April George.
There were a few restrictions, you couldn’t just go crazy and knit a colourful square in any dimension of your choice…
The request for squares
I promptly went home and made a couple of squares, in cream, of the right size… and took them back to Uni and put them in the vase for April.
I didn’t really think anything more about it, until the other day when I came across the work of April George amongst my research for my current work. What happened to my squares? Were they ever used in the collaboration project?
After a bit more researching, I found that, YES! My squares were used… and looking at the final result triggered a memory.
Metamorphoses, by April George, 2012 – contributors listed
Metamorphoses, by April George, 2012
Looking at April’s work made me think of a comment from my mum. I’d earlier explained to her how I was going to take up Noah Scalin’s creative challenge and make something everyday for a year. I’d decided on the challenge and set up the blog, Knit One, and said I’d start on my birthday (a day as good as any after my final MA show is complete).
So, what was my mum’s comment?? “What will you do with all these squares when you have 365 of them?” I don’t know, and I don’t think it matters either.
There are many options available to me, perhaps I’ll stitch them together to make scarves and blankets, they could be donated to a shelter or charity… or I could just place them, ever so carefully, together, and let people look at them… much in the way that April did, although I doubt it.
There is no correlation between the two works other than that they involve multiples of knitted squares. April’s work is collaborative, while mine will be made solely by me; April’s work reflects on society and perceptions, while mine will be a personal challenge prompted by a book I bought from amazon.
Other artists to have used knitted squares in their work include Barb Hunt and Laura Kamian.
Pall, by Barb Hunt
Solace, by Barb Hunt
The Sampler Series, by Laura Kamian
If you’d like to find out what I decide to do with 365 knitted squares, have a look at my other blog, Knit One, on 14 October 2013… Of course, if you want to see each one as it’s made, you might like to have a look a little earlier.
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