Look, Grandma, it’s a Yarn Bomb!

music piracy protection Against all expectation, knitting, crocheting and other textile skills have become the new mode of expression of choice for young, current members of the Y generation. But these ladies aren’t knitting your average grandma’s cardigan (although they could probably whip up a mean sweater vest if they wanted to!). Women today want to use their skills with fiber art to not only clothe family members and friends, but to also create art than can be enjoyed and experienced on a larger level, and include elements of not only design and function, but surprise, and in-your-face attitude. One of the most creative and audacious forms of expression in cities across the globe is the blending of textile arts and street art to invent “yarn bombing.”

 

Yarn bombing, also known as “guerilla knitting” or “knit tagging“ , involves an artist, or group of artists creating pieces at home specifically meant to decorate a public object. Statues of people or animals are frequent targets, although other displays use less obvious imagery, such as covering a bike rack in a delicate open-lace work covering. After days or even months of patient work at home, the tagger “bombs” the object overnight, surprising and delighting their audience the next day with the sheer fun and whimsy of it all.

 

Yarns bombing “exhibits” have popped up in cities as diverse as Columbia, MO, Seattle, WA and Berlin, Germany. Although statues are frequent targets, “yarnstorming” can also cover trees, chairs or traffic barriers that are outdoors, anything that doesn’t move, really! A personal favorite of mine are the “tree socks” in Seattle. A grove of trees covered in wonderfully silly striped “socks”, no one passing by these amazing creations could fail to crack a smile. To make their art affordable, many guerilla artists search for reclaimed yarn. So they might haunt thrift stores for inspiring fibers to use, unravel an old afghan or sweater, and use the recycled and less expensive yarn for their projects. Reclaiming the yarn also incorporates an element of “found art” to the projects. Although many yarn bombing projects are done under cover of darkness, other taggers like to deliberately install their art in broad daylight, thus making the assembly of the display part of the art itself. Sometimes, for larger projects, the artist will ask the local city for permission, but just as often, the city later decides to leave the work up for public enjoyment, regardless of whether permission was granted before it went up.

 

Street art has always been about the unexpected, the whimsical, and the bold. Tagging buildings, trains and streets with paint has evolved from simple vandalism to a recognized and respected form of art expression, with tag artists such as Banksy becoming world famous, and their work highly respected. Yarn bombing is the next evolution in street art, showing us that the expression of art in urban spaces, for the enjoyment of people living in urban spaces, can be as cozy and comforting as your Grandma’s favorite cardigan. Just be careful that while you’re throwing your yarn bombs, that you are setting off house alarm systems!