crochetlab report issue #3::better living thru experimental crochet

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crochetlab report #3
all material © linda scharf linda at crochetlab dot com all material © linda scharf linda at crochetlab dot com	august 8, 2005 welcome to the third issue of crochetlab report! below, you'll find a record of my wanderings from over the past month or so. these are just attractions i have;i have no commercial interest in any of the subjects about which i write. please do write (linda at crochetlab dotcom) if you have thoughts, comments. for info that wasn't available by the time i decided to go live, see current research. peace! linda table of contents: x interview with heidi of mypapercrane x interview with tamara of houndscroft farm x interview with artist bea camacho x wool fairs and fests x crochet/knit & the body x vintage, mash-ups & remixes x textiles from around the world exhibit & info x shows/competitions you might want to enter wool fairs and fests some new england and new york state fairs: fingerlakes fiber arts fest: sept. 17 & 18 common ground country fair, sponsored by the maine organic gardeners and farmers assn. sept. 23-25 vermont sheep and wool: oct. 1 and 2 ny sheep & wool: oct. 15 & 16 resources to find more fairs around the world: a list of nationwide wool festivals and fairs from spinning fiber community at livejournal a fiber arts calendar (includes wool fests, classes): fiberocity more fiberfests from thistlecove farm back to table of contents vintage, mash-ups & remixes i've run into some interesting people doing cool things with clothes over the past month or so. sometimes there is a crochet connection, and sometimes it's just the wild experimental nature of what they're doing that draws me. also related to the appreciation of the human form article (crochet/knit & the body) in this issue, because the size on the label doesn't matter. you just wear what fits! so we've got the voodoo t shirt guy (Lee Tusman, pictured below), 5 gallon bucket, lola's urban vintage and little pink dress. all of these artists can also be visited online, natch. the particulars: i met lee, aka voodoo artist, at the artbeat festival in somerville, ma. he had a couple of tables of t-shirts, and invited everybody to pull up a chair and perform t-shirt surgery. he's based in philadelphia, pa and takes his kit around the country, and wants to visit every state, so give him a call and ask him to visit your school, festival, whatever! shan of 5 gallon bucket makes “handmade & reconstructed clothes and accessories for women & kids”. she is definitely one of the people to go to when you want to support other artists who are aiming to create right livelihood. among her wares: nice hats, both reconstructed and freeform crochet. mmmmnn... ran into lola's urban vintage at the south end art market in boston, and she had a tent filled with wonders. she seems like wonderful kook and also is another transformer of clothing and SHOES! and little pink dress is a friend from online, altho she's based nearby on cape cod, ma. turns out we lived in the same town ages ago where we frequented a little clothing shop that had this amazing kiehls musk oil smell, and both have a vivid sense memory of it. :) patricia sells vintage online, and also keeps an eye out for vintage crochet and knit items, being a lover of the craft herself. back to table of contents textiles from around the world exhibit & info i saw a very fascinating and informative exhibit at the new england weavers seminar (july 21-24, '05 at merrimack colllege, north andover, ma. usa) called “promoting textile arts around the world”. this was their description: “Whether conserving textile traditions with the women of Laos, establishing a women’s economic knitting cooperative in Rwanda, or weaving with the indigenous people of Guatemala, the goals are common - to provide education and support to the textile community throughout the world, and to enrich the lives of fiber enthusiasts everywhere.” highlighting the work of cooperatives and non-profit agencies (they compiled a very helpful list of many included in the show),the exhibit was organized by the weavers of western mass, based in florence, ma. thanks to Kathleen Luchs (news) and to teri dvorak, one of the organizers, for giving me some background info on the exhibit. thanks to n.e.w.s. for opening the exhibit to the public and for drawing attention to such beautiful work and great organizations to support! pictures and materials about some individuals and oganizations that have worked with (mostly) women in u.s. and countries around the world to create/preserve/market their textiles fairly were included. very inspiring what people can do when they work together in peace and creativity! more pix from the exhibit while there, i also met two people: francis ndegwa nyaga of masai village crafts (nairobi, kenya) who is working in partnership with caroline simmons of mombasa moose co.(massachusetts, usa). francis learned about textiles from his mother, becky nyaga, and has created 3 cooperatives in kenya where people make sandals, rugs, fabrics, etc. caroline, a clothing designer, seeks to educate and make east african fabrics more widely available. let's wish them happy collaborations! (both are shown, below, with my husband, peter gold, far left.) .................................................. back to table of contents crochet/knitting and the body i ran into a book by Deborah Bergman, “the knitting goddess” and loved her descriptions of working with one's (and others') body for knitting. From Chapter Seven Arachne, Body Love,and a Lively Shrug, From The Knitting Goddess “...Knitting has this odd, back door kind of way of promoting body awareness... ...You knit and you just naturally get to know more about bodies. You’re forever measuring your sleeve length or the length from your hipbone to your collarbone, or noticing whether your shoulders are wide, or narrow, or sloped, and whether your bra size has changed. When you knit for other people, you get to discover and savor all the quirks and differences in a variety of bodies; not just your own... ...What’s both fun and liberating about this in knitting is that there is no physical size template to which you need to subscribe, and variations in body size give birth to all sorts of creative designs...” haven't been able to reach ms. bergman. her website seems not to exist anymore, and mail sent to her c/o her publishers hasn't been answered, but i am including an excerpt here in hopes that you go read the book for yourself. ......................................................................................................... back to table of contents competitions you might want to enter ............................................... enigma gallery "pushing buttons" competition from their site: “Enigma invites artists to interpret the exhibition’s title using a minimum of one (common) sewing button or images of buttons in the completed entry.” postmark deadline August 15, 2005 prospectus $25 (us)entry fee, nonrefundable juror's prize: $500 + solo show in '06 ............................................... “wearable expressions” from palos verdes art center deadline: slide or digital entries due aug. 27 2005 $25 entry fee, $35 up to 3 cash awards from $100-1000 prospectus here ............................................... To Have and To Hold artists' books that people can touch w/o gloves minnesota center for book arts call for entries deadline: originals delivered by Sept. 10, 2005 ............................................... spectacular garments: artwear in motion competition from the textile center minneapolis, mn, usa entry forms: scroll to bottom left at above link deadline sept 16, 2005 $25 (us)entry fee .............................................. beyond fibers:new forms steamboat springs art council, colorado usa entry fee slide deadline: oct. 7 '05 info: beth at steamboatspringsarts.com .............................................. “wrapture” scarves in any medium: crochet, knit, sew, paint, weave, braid, bead, the more unusual the better the only rule is that the art be no larger than 24"X72" the show will run from oct.7th - oct. 21st, 2005 with voting by the public in several categories (including an age 12 and under, fancy schmancy, oddest, most likely to succeed, unusually interesting...) there will be prizes and the entrants may either sell scarves at eclectics gallery or have item returned to them after the show closes if the artist opts to sell, there is a 60/40 split: 60% to artist, 40% to gallery. deadline is Monday Oct 3rd send scarves, the price you'd like item to retail for and SASE if the item is to be returned, not sold at the gallery (items NOT for sale will be returned by around end of october; items FOR sale will be kept until around nov. 15th) to: Ec.lec.tics An Artists' Cooperative! 7015 Oak Street Kansas City, MO 64113 816-361-6643 info: eclecticsgallery@yahoo.com .............................................. exhibition & sale in spring 06 all 3-d craft media on coffee related theme no entry fee deadline: Nov. 1, '05 (3)slides, bio, statement, SASE to: the store @decordova decordova museum and sculpture park 51 sandy pond rd lincoln, ma 01773 usa phone: 781.2598692 ............................................... back to table of contents .......................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................... top of page crochetlab.com::better living thru experimental crochet art and research about what happens to string when it is hooked up to a stick, turned loose and encouraged to run wild	top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page top of page