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Below is a current list of Knitting Artists. Click on any name to view images and read about their work. You will also find a contact email address at the end of each piece. Click on any image to view full size Guidelines: Anyone living in the UK can apply to be included on our Knitting Artists page. You need to supply an artist’s statement and up to four images of your own designs. You should have had your work exhibited or be writing for magazines or be a 'Designer-Maker'. To help promote your own work you may be invited to take workshops during National Knitting Week and at other knitting events. We are often approached by Galleries who are looking for knitters to exhibit their work with them. To send us details, please click on the 'contact us' link in the menu at the top
Statement: I took up knitting
while I was studying sculpture at Camberwell College of Arts and I've
never looked back. Almost everything I do now is related to yarn in
some way. From stop-motion animation to sculpture to jewellery it's
all about the knitting. When animating I love bringing my creatures
to life, it's incredibly satisfying to give feelings and emotion to
simple pieces of knitting. The characters tend to know what they want
to get up to once they get in front of a camera. They are rarely interested
in following any plans I have for My sculptural work often feature slightly disturbing undertones. By bringing a dark side to wool I've moved into the realm of Horror Knitting. Cuddly blood and gore is rarely scary but often disconcerting. In April 2009 I decided it was time to show my yarn love through jewellery. I made myself a pair of earrings featuring a tiny pair of knitting needles with a little bit of my hand dyed yarn. Then I wanted them in another colour and another and before I knew it I had a whole range of jewellery for the fashionable knitter. Click here to contact Max Click here for Max's website
Statement: "Sally's parents were Utopian Socialists whose ethos was everything is made by hand. They may have been unconventional but they were an extremely talented group so she was able to card, spin, weave and knit at an early age, so it is as natural to her as walking and running. She went to art college in the 1960s when art and design were at its most progressive, prior to it being absorbed into the university system, where she gained a degree in fashion (heavily frowned upon by her parents). She then became a designer for high street stores such as Liberties and House of Fraser. Creatively it was very boring so she picked up the needles again to create texture, form and patterns. From there it was a short step to working with more radical designers and having her own label which was exported to Italy, Japan as well as supplying leading London boutiques. Articles about her work were in the Japanese Elle magazine. Sally gets regular orders from movie people attending the Cannes Film Festival. She is passionate about knitting and has worked with everything from fishing line, titanium, paper, rope to the finest quality silks and cashmere. Her design is contemporary cutting edge and she sees no reason why it should be confined to cold weather and the countryside." Click here to contact Sally
Statement: I learned to knit
at the age of 7yrs but it was only when I did a textiles degree, as
a mature student, I began to appreciate the versatility of textile
crafts. I now specialise in using the traditional techniques of crochet,
feltmaking and knitting to create tactile contemporary art pieces
for exhibition, installation, bespoke fashion accessories and interior
design. My latest work centres on the versatility of recyclable and
discarded materials, investigating how they can be incorporated to
create decorative and functional pieces. Click here to contact Patricia Click here to view more of Patricia's work
Statement:Updated February 2011 I originally did a
BA in Fashion / Textiles at Cheltenham. I have worked as a freelance
knitwear designer for a number of years, based first in London and
now on the Sussex Coast. I have designed for various companies supplying
the major high street retailers, and smaller independent companies,
both hand and machine knits. I also taught knitwear design at London
College of Fashion. Click here to contact Sian Click here to view more of Sian's work
Statement: My mother taught me to knit, crotchet and hand sew when I was in primary school, as I got older I fell in love with the fashion industry strongly influenced and inspired by shows such as The Clothes Show and designers such as, Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto. Over the years I had been designing/knitting made to order garments for private clients, which encouraged me to go back and pursue a career in design. Finally after attending a cultural exhibition in October 2004 the colours and textures of the ethnic fabrics used to create an African village inspired me to officially produce a range of luxury handmade knitwear and accessories through my label, Eclectic Mix. My designs are heavily influenced by the yarn texture and simple asymmetrical shapes, like squares and rectangles. I have received commissions from stylists as far away as New York . On March 17th 2005, I was part of a selected group of new designers who took part in Alternative Fashion Week, sponsored by Swatch.. Since then I have gone on to commercial freelance design, designing swatches for a textile company selling designs to international retail/fashion companies. From April 2004 until May 2005, I attended the New Entrepreneur Scholarship Programme, partnered by amongst others,The Princes Trust, Hackney Business Venture Enterprise and University of Westminster. On production of my completed business plan on the 11th May 2005, I was awarded a business start-up grant. In October 2006, I launched my label at the Fashion Enter Boutique, Crowndale Centre, Croydon, which is owned by Fashion Enter and Fashion Capital, with a view to launching my on-line collection in 2008. My collection is also available at CC Dressing Rooms, South Woodford. I like to produce collections that are style led, yet fashion conscious an eclectic mix, of vibrant colours and textures, focusing on outside seams and combinations of simple stitch patterns to create texture, hence the name, Eclectic Mix. Utilising blended or pure wool yarns and at times fabric, to create a luxury easily wearable eclectic mix of clothing and accessories. My current influences are Sonia Rykiel, Missoni and handmade vintage patterns from the 40's, 60's and 70's. These influences inspire me to design items that are both able to capture the qualities of the texture and colour of yarn in a very modern and innovative way. The vintage patterns/styles I source, reflect and stretch the versatility of handmade techniques on an extremely practical yet what seems an impossibly stylistic level, and this is what I try to capture within my own collection. I take pride in the fact that my garments are produced by UK based knitters and manufacturers. Click here to contact Sonji Click here to view more of Sonji's work
Statement: Underpinning my practice is my concern with the nature of the creative process and the condition and location of art production. Inspired by Michel de Certeau's concept of the art of making in the everyday, my work aims to celebrate the vernacular and creative skills that are invisible, marginal or being lost through migration, socio-economic changes and globalisation. I am interested in the concepts of object détourné, hybridity and the practice of cultural resistance. These issues have and will bring me to work in cross-cultural and transnational contexts where the practice of making objects continues to be an integral part of one's sense of identity. My practice includes a wide range of making materials and processes including knitting and stitching and digital imaging. I am particularly interested in developing a practice that brings together local-global concerns and traditional-innovative skills. My practice is also located in a wide range of contexts including public and non-art spaces. With my current research project here and there I aim to develop a new model of art practice that explores the complexity inherent to transnational experience and identity. This will be achieved through a series of context-based and collaborative art making projects that bring together artist and communities in meaningful and ethical creative exchanges. In 2000 I began spool knitting (French knitting) exploring the simplicity and universality of the technique and its association with home crafts and childhood. I have since realised a large number of French knitted installations for solo exhibitions (les merveilles de Françoise Dupré, Can'Art, Toulouse, France 2002; French knitting, the gallery, Stratford-upon-Avon, England 2003; parterres, Charles Darwin University Gallery, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia 2004) and for group exhibitions (Knit 2 Together Concepts in Knitting, Crafts Council, England 2005-06; Art in Romney Marsh, Ivychurch, England 2004). The French knitting technique is simple to learn or relearn, it is adaptable and can be used with other knitting and making techniques to create transcultural art work. French knitting crosses over social and cultural boundaries as well as age groups and as a group activity it has been an ideal means through which I have been able to develop collaborative practice that engages with communities and places. So far I have realised two projects: snáth nasc, de fil en aiguille… while artist in residence at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland 2003-04 and Fujaan for the Crafts Council exhibition Knit 2 Together Concepts in Knitting England 2005. The knitted works I create become part of installations which often include video work and/or stills prints. I consider the digital work an other kind of way of engaging with the process of knitting. The video here and there, french knitting, Brixton made in 2003 explores the solitary, meditative and performative aspects of knitting while the series of digital images, in snáth nasc, de fil en aiguille… and for Fujaan souvenir pack, emphasis the intersubjective engagement with participants. (here and there, french knitting, Brixtonwill be shown in Blurring the Boundaries: Fashion Design Innovation in Contemporary Knitting group exhibition at the Fairfield City Museum and Gallery, Sydney, Australia 2006) Click here to contact Francoise
Statement: Having trained in textile design and worked in textiles while bringing up her family, Alison began designing and making handknitwear in the 1980s. Click here to contact Alison Click here for Alison's website
Statement: I design and make
crochet accessories - jewellery, bags, scarves and hats, and one of
a kind freeform crochet wallhangings and garments. The jewellery is
worked in bead crochet using silk and/or cotton with glass beads.
The bags, hats and scarves are worked in different types of crochet
including freeform, using a variety of yarns. Inspiration for the
jewellery and accessories comes from the wide variety of yarns and
beads now available, the natural world and the seasons provides the
inspiration for garments and wallhangings. I usually start out with
a general idea for the piece I`m making, which evolves during the
working process. This is particularly true with freeform crochet,
where different yarns can be added as the piece progresses. I am fascinated
by colour and texture, particularly the way colours are affected when
placed next to each other. I hope that in the future crochet will
be seen to realise it's full potential. Click here to contact Pauline Click here for Pauline's website
Statement: I grew up with the touch and feel of textiles, collecting scraps from the factory floors where my mother and aunts worked, and where I visited frequently to collect pieces for dolls clothes. I could knit, sew and crochet before I learned to read or write; and have been doing so most of my life. In the 1970s, I had a business called The Wendy House, designing whacky knitwear for West End stores, employing an army of home knitters in the suburbs of London. I gave this up to have children. I designed knitting and crochet patterns for magazines from 2006 to 2008. I am excited by colour and texture, fabric and fibre. I use knitting and crochet in my textile art to illustrate inner and outer themes; often abstract. I love to invent and explore; and to mix and (mis)match, sometimes disparate, media and techniques, frequently using recycled materials. I knit with plastic carrier bags, combine papier maché with fibre, knitting with emulsion paints, distressed fabric with felted human hair and cat fur. Many of my pieces glow in the dark. Click here to contact Wendy Click here to view more of Wendy's work
Statement: My performance and installation work focuses on the embodied nature of being and how the experience of time and memory is stored and expressed in the body. I began using knitting in my performance practice in 2006, looking at how knitting can represent and materialise aspects of time and memory, through the creation of a 3-dimensional fabric from something linear. The repeated stitches are indicative of how small details or moments gradually build up into something larger; in contrast to many other artefacts, in most knitting the individual actions which go towards creating the object are still clearly evidnet in the finished piece, while the continuity of the yarn suggests how these details are part of a seamless whole. In performative knitting, particularly outdoors, I am also exploring how bringing this domestic, traditionally women's craft into a public space can influence perceptions of both the work and the space. My knitting performance work has been presented in London, Chester, Cumbria, Leicester, Nottingham, and in El Paso and Houston, Texas. In 6-hour durational performance Ravel, first presented at Camberwell Arts Festival, I laid a line of yarn along a 5-km route through Camberwell, connecting places that in the past were related to water and other historical sites. I then retraced my steps, knitting up the yarn and incorporating small objects found along the way or given to me by viewers, as well as all the tangles and breaks the yarn had got itself into over the day. Versions of this piece have also been performed in Chester and El Paso, Texas. The ongoing performance and textile project Knitting a Rothko explores time and labour, juxtaposing the cosy domesticity of knitting with monumental art-making. Over a series of performances, using largely recycled yarn, I knit to add to a large panel designed to echo the works of abstract painter Mark Rothko. After each performance, the piece is hung unfinished, yarn trailing from its edge, in the gallery where the performance has taken place. In the cumulative performance project A Year of Waiting, from 1 January to 31 December 2010 I knitted each time I waited for public transport, adding to a long strip and changing colour on each occasion, marking the duration of each time and adding to the year's total of waiting. The completed work is approximately 4.5 m long. More recently I have been experimenting with a process of knitting, unravelling and reknitting to explore the ‘memory' of yarn as a metaphor for body memory, and the attempt to ‘hold back' time by undoing what has been made. Projects include the ongoing series Knitted Month, in which I knit, unravel and reknit a panel of 31 stitches x 31 rows every day for a month, using various methods, and recent durational performance Hour, in which I continually knit and unravel backwards and forwards across the same section of a long knitted strip. Click here to contact Rachel Click here for more information about Rachel's work
Statement: As a designer I am inspired by many things like, but I very much have a love of colour! I'm very inspired by Fashion designer Zandra Rhodes and throughout university I referred back to her work for motivation and even wrote my dissertation about her work. I love her use of colour and prints. Many of my knitted bags I embroider and Zandra Rhodes knitted circles print collection has influenced my designs. I've also made bags with knitted circles as decoration, which was inspired by painting by klimt. Click here to contact Sarah Click here to see of Sarah's work
Statement: I was taught to spin, crochet, knit and sew as a young girl by various friends and family members, but let all of these skills lapse as adult life took over. It's only now in my mid thirties, that I've come back to them and they've literally taken over my life and my home. I work only with discarded materials; yarns and laces found in charity shops; plastics hoaked from rubbish bins; carrier bags begged from friends; and even foam and bubble wrap plundered from skips. I love to take something that no one else wants and give it a new lease of life; turning it into a thing of beauty and keeping it from landfill. Most of my time is taken up by coral reef project for the Institute For Figuring based in Los Angeles. This project, to highlight the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, has lead my crocheted, woven, hand and machine-knitted, felted and sculpted reef dwellers to be included in the IFF's Chicago (Oct 2007) and LA (Jan 2008) NYU, Broadway, New York (April 2008) Hayward Gallery, London (summer 2008 tba), LACE, LA (late 2008 tba) exhibtions. As well as this I'm overjoyed to be taking part in the International Fibre Collaborative's wrapping of a gas station, Syracuse NY (April 2008) Besides the recycling aspect of my work, which I'm glad to say is capturing the public's attention, I adore investigating the social and theraputic aspect of handicrafts and I am currently in the process of setting up a project for a local hospital's clinic waiting room, where I recently found myself spending far too much time for my own boredon threshold. Inga Hamilton update
Fibre Activist, Inga Hamilton, better known as Rockpool Candy, pops up in the strangest of places. She may be encouraging random acts of textile kindness in a lounge-room installation on the streets of Belfast; Using textile graffiti to adorn an underground prison cell in the middle of Rome; Cor Blimey Crocheting! a giant bacteria in front of the Minister for Culture in Leigh; Or simply using neolithic and 12th Century principles to build looms and spinning wheels from branches and junk in an English Orchard. No matter where her current fibre-based adventure may be, she'll be attempting to make something beautiful, to engage, and to challenge the onlooker to reconsider their lost connection with textiles.With her unusual brand of natural fibre ornamentation, her latest sculptures involve bone wrapping, leaf stencils and creating folklore in upstate New York in October 09.Halloween 09 will see her working alongside the Crochet Liberation Front, calling together spinners and crocheters to create a giant spider's web that will be dragged through an Oregon river to felt it. And December 09 brings a month-long art residency in Tampa Florida, exploring her experimental fibre techniques. Her US tour will kick off with her Let Me Ease Your Day fibre movement at Chicago's Yarn Con. Not content with full-time fibre activism, Inga also designs crochet patterns, such as for her pebble rug, using her own hand-scoured, dyed and spun yarns. Rockpool candy's crocheted viruses installation showed at the Turnpike Gallery, Leigh 09. Click here to contact Inga Click here to read more about her work
Statement: I specialised in knitted textiles at the Hull School of Art and Design. I find inspiration in everything around me, in particular landscapes, the coast and nature. My products are knitted accessories, I combine colour and texture into my knit structures to create unique and exciting designs. I enjoy combining hand-knitting, machine knitting and crochet. My current collection is inspired by the internal mechanisms of old pocket watches; I have created a luxury collection of knitted accessories in a dramatic colour palette of rich colours. My theme presents a mix of femininity and organic texture. I have used Scottish lamb's wool to create a wealth of structures in the form of scalloped and picot edges, extravagant crochet and unique stitches. Click here to contact Vikki Click here to view more of her work
Statement: Brighton-based knitwear company Cardigan was set up by Kate Jenkins in 2003 to fulfil her philosophy that anything can be created from yarn as long as it is made with love. With a strong emphasis on colour and innovative witty details, Cardigan has become synonymous with the creation of beautiful knitted and crocheted fashion and art. 2009 saw Kate have her fist solo show of her work, her exhibition entitled "Kate's Cafe' where she turned the gallery into a fantasy cafe where everything was made out of yarn. Click here to contact Kate Click here for kate's website Click here for slideshow of Kate's recent exhibition
Statement: Through experimentation and research Rachel has developed an innovation in craft concepts, techniques and tools called Extreme Craft©. Rachel has initially focussed on the first in the series - Extreme Knitting©. Using this innovation in hand knitting produces over 30mm (1 inch) thick hand knitted carpets in extraordinary colour blends of 100-200 yarns simultaneously. These pieces are much larger than would normally be seen in knitted items as Rachel has designed a new range of tools to make this possible. Crafting with so many yarns simultaneously changes how we view yarn colour. Suddenly yarn can be used like paint, mixed and blended, changed at will without losing the flow. Samples and stock are made in a 70-80% wool mix with 20-30% fancy or strengthening yarns such as silks, ribbons, cottons and metallic yarns. Rugs can also be made using 100% pure single type yarns such as deliciously warm wool or beautiful cool cottons. Rugs and tools are available
for purchase either from stock or by commission. Rugs can be made
to the size required for their purpose. All these rugs are deeply
comfortable, very hard wearing, maintainable and wonderfully versatile.
They can be designed to fit with both traditional and contemporary
spaces. These rugs are heirloom quality and have the potential to
last many generations making them an excellent investment. They can
be used as: During 2006-2007 Rachel will introduce further of her Extreme Craft© concepts. Click here to contact Rachel Click here to view more of Rachel's work
Statement: Having studied Fine Art at the Slade School, Susie worked as a magazine and partworks editor for 11 years before going freelance in 1996. Her work spans a number of disciplines and she particularly enjoys activities that involve recycling and reinventing. "Knitting and
crochet skills have been passed down through the generations and are
an important part of our cultural heritage. I love the fact that these
disciplines are not only traditional and practical but a wonderful
means of creative expression. As a designer, knitting and crochet
are not only a part of my career but also of my daily domestic Click here to contact Susie Click here to see more of Susie's work
Statement: Ruth Lee was, until retirement, an associate Lecturer at Cumbria Institute of Arts (Carlisle). She is now a full time fibre artist, International tutor, a writer and knitted textile designer. Ruth is passionate about moving knit forward as a challenging and relevant working method within contemporary fibre arts practice. She is interested in how ideas evolve through the making process, and the symbiotic relationship between materials, processes and ideas. Ruth lives in the English border country with its ever changing skies and rugged but beautiful landscape, a peaceful and inspirational place in which to have her studio. Multi disciplinary in approach, Ruth's current body of work explores knit, stitch, print and off-loom techniques in a wide range of manmade and natural materials including paper yarn, wire, wool and basketry materials. Applications include small-scale wearables, knitting patterns for publications, exhibitions and site-specific fibre-arts work for exterior spaces. In 2005 two pieces of Ruth's work were selected for Knit 2 Together : Concepts in Knitting; a major Crafts Council touring exhibition of contemporary knitting. Click here to contact Ruth Click here to view more of Ruth's work
Statement: My work is inspired by my eclectic interests, my taste for old & odd stuff, sweets, nature, historical events and for the different cultures that surround me here in London. I gather and communicate my ideas through my generous, colourful and nostalgic sketchbooks full of drawings, collages, colour palettes, personal photography and collected images and objects. From my imaginary wonderlands, I explore handicraft techniques such as hand-knitting, crochet, embroidery and paper experimentations to create two dimensional knitted samples and various textured surfaces . I then transform them into three dimensional objects by playing with the scales and qualities of the materials chosen. My creations can vary greatly in scale, playfulness and detail; they and can be sculptural and unique like the knitted monster, or poetic experimentations made of plastic and paper, or detailed and precious accessories, jewellery, or even fun knitted furniture for children and rich bulky pieces for interiors. Click here to contact Aude Marie Click here for Aude Marie's website
Statement: I have always been interested in textiles and crafts, especially knitting. I learnt how to knit at 7 years old. I still have that first piece of knitting I did and sometimes take it along to workshops I am teaching to encourage people. I have been working as a freelance knitwear designer since November 2007 and always enjoy the new challenges that each new project throws up as well as working with different yarns and textures. I am always keen to persuade each new customer to have a hand in designing their garment; they often surprise themselves with just how creative they can be! Click here to contact Rachel Click here for Rachel's website
Statement by Lisa J. Curtis: In person, British author Rachael Matthews is just as outlandish as the illustrations in her new guidebook, "Knitorama: 25 Great & Glam Things to Knit." The self-appointed knitting ambassador made a special appearance at the "Holiday Craftacular" in Greenpoint on Dec. 17. While wielding four-foot-long knitting needles ("to knit carpets and curtains," of course), Matthews (pictured) wore a knitted duck, perched on a knitted nest full of knitted eggs - on her head. Her whimsical hat couldn't help but draw attention to Matthews's mission to raise enthusiasm about "knitting in public," her personal catch-phrase. "It's really amazing and different from what we have in England," said Matthews of the "Craftacular." "People were openly inquisitive about the craft. In England, people are supportive, but don't ask so many questions about how to do it. "Through her book and through her nomadic club, Cast Off, which she co-founded in London in 2001, the East London resident is encouraging folks to take their knitting into unexpected places: posh bars, nightclubs and on "the tube," London's subway. (Of course, for nightclubs with poor lighting, Matthews recommends wearing a miner's hat.) Matthews's book sets itself apart from the usual manuals with instructions on how to make clothing by encouraging readers to tackle soft sculptures: knitted cakes, ham sandwiches and pints of stout. One might call these examples of Matthews's "extreme knitting." "It's a 3-D medium," said Matthews. "There are so many different yarns and needle sizes, you can work in 2-D and 3-D. There's a lot more freedom once you get past the idea of knitting clothing. "But she does include patterns for wearable art, too, including fried-egg earmuffs and a hip (and seemingly easy to make) cardigan made of 30 rectangles and four buttons. "Knitting is really important for your well-being, for therapy and love, really," explained Matthews. "When you're knitting for someone else, it's for love. So whether it's done in a lonesome way [at home] or teaching the world to knit, I like to live craft as a way of life." Click here to contact Rachael Click here for Rachael's website
Statement: Claire Montgomerie is a textiles designer, specialising in knitting and crochet. Since graduating with an MA in constructed textiles from the Royal College of Art in 2002, she has been designing her own eclectic range of accessories, toys and garments under the name of Monty. She has also designed and written knitting and crochet books and patterns. Her latest book, Easy Baby Knits due out in 2007 and she is currently writing a book of patterns based on her accessories. The knitted toys are participating in an exhibition at the Manchester craft and design centre until December 2006. She enjoys teaching textiles at many different levels, working with people of all ages through workshops and knitting lessons at different institutions in North London such as the artsdepot in North Finchley, Barnet College in Herts and the yarn salon, loop, in Islington. The toys I create are the result of collaboration with animation company Model Robot. I feel that the quirky characters drawn by the animators translate into the textiles medium perfectly, capturing their charm and personality to create eccentric and sometimes peculiar looking animals, aliens robots and monsters. I loved working with the flat images and bringing them to life, mirroring Model Robot's process of animation. This delight in the making has led me to continue to craft creatures from my own sketches, as well as Model robot's, forming toys which are not only meant to be used in the traditional sense of the word. While they make a fun and beautiful child's plaything, I find the toys also have a universal attraction, with many adults being reminded of their own well-loved, threadbare childhood friend. I find as I begin to make the toys, each one gradually develops its own individual character. This well-worn texture and one-off quality is created by the wonky irregularity of a unique handmade piece, incorporating hand knitting and hand sewing, old scraps of yarn, thread and fabric, vintage buttons and cut up, old, worn jumpers. The knitting patterns I am producing with Model Robot, I hope, will let each maker experience just this pleasure and joy in fashioning an original hand crafted piece. We invite each maker to send us a picture of their finished creature to emphasise the uniqueness each person can bring to the same basic pattern. New for 2011, Claire now edits 'Inside Crochet' magazine and has more published books; Easy Kids Knits RPS 2009, Knitting for Children Cico Books 2011, Knitting Vintage Carlton Publishing 2011 Click here to contact Claire Click here to view more of Claire's work
Statement: In 2002 I started a part time degree in Art and Design (textiles and ceramics) not quite knowing where it would take me. Four years later I find myself working with hand knitted wire creating both abstract and figurative wall hangings and framed pieces. My enduring interest is in the human form particularly portraiture. Most of my portrait based work starts out as small detailed drawings and my aim is to reproduce the spontaneity of these initial sketches in the final stitched piece. I am increasingly enjoying the challenge of working on a large scale and exploiting the apparent fragility of the finished work and its capacity to cast shadows and secondary images when displayed. Click here to contact Kerry Click here to view more of Kerry's work
Statement: Deirdre Nelson is an artist originally from Ireland but living and working in Glasgow. Since graduating from Glasgow School of Art in 1992, her work has evolved through experimenting with materials and methods of making in which handwork and craftsmanship provide direction and context. Hand skills are used in the work in a humourous commentary on social and textile history within the museum and contemporary gallery. Her work employs a variety of techniques and materials fusing traditional textile skills and contemporary reinterpretation. She has exhibited in Britain and overseas and has recently been selected for Jerwood contemporary Makers in London. Deirdre is currently artist in residence at Taigh Chearsabagh Museum and Arts Centre in Lochmaddy N. Uist, Outer Hebrides . She is working with artefacts and archive material relating to social and domestic history of the Uists and will use the archive to inform new work to create and exhibition within the museum at Taigh Chearsabagh beginning May - December 2008 . With an interest in hand skills, Deirdre was initially drawn to objects relating to ‘making' within the collection, wool winder, weaving shuttle, drop spindle, rope twister, butter pats etc. With a keen interest in the history and technique of knitting, Deirdre has been working with Aran and fisherman's gansey patterns in creating work that relates to fishing but also those at home working in a domestic setting while fishermen are at sea. Domestic objects have textiles (knit and embroidered cloth) added which bringing objects and social history to life. Texts have provided inspiration also through the collection of Gaelic proverbs that relate to the objects and provide humorous and poignant addition to the work. Materials such as linen, hemp, wool and tweed have been carefully chosen to relate to Uist history and many works are edged with gold that relates to the discovery of gold dust in N. Uist in the past. The community are getting involved with the knitting of fish which will be auctioned off to raise money for the lifeboat association at the end of the year. This is a project which continues from Deirdre's previous work in Shetland and a collaborative project ‘The Fish Exchange' with Hazel Hughson of Shetland Arts. Involving the community in knitting fish not only provides enjoyable activity but also links the history of netting, knitting and fishing. She hopes to challenge some fishermen to knit their own catch Click here to contact Deirdrie Click here for Deirdrie's blog with current projects Click here for blog with knit related work for an Irish exhibition Modern Languages with National Craft Gallery in Ireland
Statement: Domestic bliss - I love to knit! Liz encompasses a fun and playful quality in her work by using a traditional craft form mixed with a quirky sense of the unusual and unexpected. Her collection of hand knitted pieces are often inspired by everyday objects that are then transformed into colourful and tactile pieces that gain a narrative quality. 'There is a really playful side to my work and I want to take hand knitting out of context and into the art world to enthuse more people, I aim to take knitting to another, more inclusive and creative level.' Liz's work has been featured in Simply Knitting magazine, Issue 21 ‘Knit one, purl fun' and Knit Today magazine, The Knitted Wedding and The Knitted Garden. Exhibitions include Chiswick House in London, Liberty's Department Store, London, The Crypt Gallery in Seaford and Trinity Arts Centre in Tunbridge Wells. Click here to contact Liz
Statement: Naomi Paul is a London based textile designer specialising in handmade interior textiles. Inspired by traditional craft techniques and the emotional attachment that one can develop over time towards materials and objects. Naomi explores the possibilities of knit and crochet for the home and beyond. With a considered approach to materials and processes Naomi sources organic, industry waste and home grown, British luxury yarns. By constructive and deconstructive exploration, the designs evolve organically, forming pattern through structure with a subtle and sophisticated use of colour. Click here to contact Naomi Click here for Naomi's website Hook and Scumble (Steph Phillips)
Statement: I was born and grew
up in South Wales surrounded by the inspiring Wye Valley and Forest
of Dean and later moved to the North West. Through my childhood I
was always found to be experimenting with different artistic mediums
and at aged 7 was taught to crochet and sew. I have studied 3-dimensional
Design and specialised in jewellery and silver smithing , and
later went onto experimenting with freeform and wire crochet as well
as developing a technique to produce porcelain crochet pieces. Through
personal study and by attending a variety of three-dimensional art
workshops I have gone onto develop my own style of crochet and three
dimensional art, and continued to be inspired by my surroundings.
I work now in mainly freeform crochet using a variety of mediums
including recycle materials, wire and wool . I also continue
to develop other textile techniques such as felting, spinning and
natural dyeing which are also featured in my textile work. Click here to contact Steph Click here for Hook & Scumble website
Statement: For many years I was a Maths teacher, at times using knitting as a vehicle for teaching Maths. Since I retired from teaching in schools, I have continued with mathematical knitting and also branched out into other types of knitting. My particular interest has become the design and creation of Illusion Knitting (sometimes known as Shadow Knitting) pieces of work. If you have never seen, or have little experience of, illusion knitting a short explanation may help. In illusion knitting a piece of work will look like alternate stripes of two different colours when viewed from directly in front but when viewed at an angle a picture or pattern appears. My ever-growing collection of illusion knits has attracted a great deal of interest from around the world and I believe that I have revolutionised charting for illusion knits enabling others to create their own complex illusion knits more easily. It is extremely difficult to photograph illusion knits effectively. They really have to be seen 'in the flesh' to see how a piece of striped knitting in two colours turns into a detailed picture in several shades. Despite being brought up in a houseful of knitters, I only learned to knit about twenty years ago. I am told that I still knit too tightly but that is an advantage with illusion knitting as it reveals the picture to even better effect. Click here to contact Steve Click here to view more of Steve's work
Statement: I started knitting in 2001 as a warm
up activity. To get me settled in my studio I would knit to ready
my fingers and get thinking. I soon discovered that I would knit for
whole afternoons. The warm up became my main project. The wool I had
decided to knit with, at that time was red since the most exciting
wool in the shop was red coloured. Since there was a red line on the
subway system where I was living I would knit the red knitting riding
the red line. After the red knitting, the next idea was to measure
a journey around Japan. I was sponsored by the Gardner fellowship
and made a journey to collect yarns from all over Japan, to knit everyday
and to climb mountains. And in my everyday knitting I measured out
the journey I was making. The idea for this journey came when a teacher
pointed out that knitting was a portable art form. I could carry with
me everything I needed. I collected needles and yarn as I went and
otherwise traveled light. With only a small backpack. So it was portable
and also offered an introduction and purpose to being in Japan. Everywhere
I went I had to explain I was Click here to contact Celia Click here to view more of Celia's work
Statement: All pieces are telling a story, the tale of the garment, to be worn as ATTIRE; making the artefact into attractive spell for the Eyes and the Touch; enticing the imagination to complete the habiliment and dressing the Body and Soul for a dramatic make over. As the Mastery of the Artifice sublimates the Beauty of the Human attempt for betterment, the Pomp magnifies the wearer, doting him/her with new properties and qualities. Real or false, does it matter? May we be able to rewrite our own selves; live our life as desired and dreamt! Like the Bollywood heroins, I want my wearers to love and live life to its maximal expression: glamorous endangered species ready to roar and show its claws! I knit for them unique pieces ready to play a tale that inhabits the vesture. Pakeezah is not an invitation to the Masquerade but rather the revealing: when the attire exalts the utmost essence of oneself! Click here to contact Louisette
Statement: My awareness of textiles came through 'Janie', a rag doll made for me by my Aunt. Janie's orange wool hair was a great comfort to me, I would tickle my nose with it. Her hair would gradually wear out and my Godmother would give her a new lot, always wool, always orange.My Godmother became my greatest inspiration. She was always making things, not frumpy, lumpy things that you hid in your wardrobe, but fashionable, desirable toys and clothes. She was a free spirit. She lived alone, was unmarried and just got on with her own thing. I associated textiles with her and therefore with freedom. I loved the 'Clangers', they were knitted. My Godmother taught me to knit, it was difficult, she was left handed. I loved knitting. I was further inspired by the knitwear designer, Patricia Roberts. She did not rely upon traditional textile images, wholesome flowers, but turned instead to the contemporary urban world for inspiration. She was bold. I entered a knitwear design competition in a craft magazine. I won. I was academic but I was also creative. I knew which path I would follow, the one that represented individuality. My studio practise questions conformity and notions of normality, and intersects the categorisation of art and craft. I use knitting to explore pertinent contemporary issues of the domestic, gender and the human condition. I find knitting to be a powerful medium for self-expression and communication because of the cultural preconceptions surrounding it. My work subverts these preconceptions and disrupts the notion of the medium being passive and benign. My ideas are expressed through an exploration of the human form and have resulted in pieces such as 'Odd Gloves' and 'Odd Sweaters'. These series question physical normality incorporating both humour and fear. The titles are important. I like to play on words to make visual suggestions: 'Hand of Good, Hand of God' and 'Skin - a good thing to live in'. In 'Anyway' I explore value and scale through the production of a large knitted sculpture made on CAD controlled industrial machinery. Click here to contact Freddie Click here to view more of Freddie's work
Statement: My designs are rooted in Scottish tradition, partly because it's an essential part of me but also because I feel it's crucial that we document these traditions and make them available when so much cultural heritage is being lost. I'm also much influenced by the yarns I create or find, usually letting the pattern suggest itself from the hank or ball. In 1975 Lynn moved to Arran to set up her textile studio at Silverbirch, so that she could work professionally and raise her children. Lynn learned to weave, spin and dye with plants in Sweden. For the past 35 odd years she's worked with yarns & colour designing knitting patterns and woven wall-hangings. Lynn has written two books: "Knitting Patterns for Handspun Wool" and "Knitting with Handspun". Click here to contact Lynn Click here to view more of Lynn's work
Statement: For the past twenty years I have worked as an Environmental Scientist, leading on waste and resource efficiency. In 2011, I became a full time knit and crochet designer. Like many knitting and crochet fanatics, I was taught by my Nan at a very young age and have loved all things fibre ever since. I started out knitting scarves and dresses for my dolls and by my teens I was knitting Patricia Roberts iconic liquorice allsorts jumpers. Now, I design fun and quirky knit and crochet patterns which are regularly published in UK and US knitting magazines and publications. These include' Let's Get Crafting', 'Knitting Pattern a Day Calendar' and 'Let's Knit'. I also publish my own patterns online and run local knit and crochet workshops. It's really important that knit and crochet skills are passed on from generation to generation and I'm pleased to be part of this through my workshops. Many of my designs are inspired by Japanese Amigurumi. I love bringing small things to life with yarn and hook. My knitted cakes never fail to raise a smile and feedback and comments include 'a true work of art', 'fantastic cakes' and 'lovely loveliness!'. I love to recycle and upcycle yarns, and encourage others to take a green approach to their crafting. Click here to contact Lynne Click here to view more of Lynne's work
Statement: My work in the main
is concerned with my own and other people's memories of and associations
with knitting where pockets form repositories for those memories and
where, in some cases, the memories are incorporated as text into garments
and other articles. In more recent work I have
used knitting as a basis to explore other areas as in the images above
'30 Seconds' consists of 15 knitted and sewn children's garments related
to the fact the it has been said that every two seconds a child dies
in Africa as a result of disease, poverty, hunger or violence of one
kind or another. Click here to contact Biddy
Statement: Sally Spinks graduated with a Masters in Fine Art from Goldsmith's, London in 2008 and works mainly with textiles including hand and machine knitting. She has an interest in how issues of control and consumerism impact on the changing nature of the class system and her work explores areas where these intersect with home, identity and a sense of belonging to both our past and future. Using predominately domestic materials she produces either installation works or sculptural pieces. Since graduating Sally has exhibited in the UK and the US and continues to develop her artistic practice in both knitting and other textile medium. Like many other knitting enthusiasts, she was taught to knit at an early age by her mother and has a sister and aunt who are just as passionate about the craft. Along with them she has also knitted garments for use in major feature films as well as working with fashion designers. Click here to contact Sally Click here to view more of Sally's work
Statement: Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2003, I've been working as a freelance knitted textile designer. My work often appears organic but is in fact highly planned, delicate swatches that illustrate the detail and depth that is possible within the surface texture of knit. New stitches are developed by hand and then later translated on to domestic and dubied machines. Challenging preconceptions of knit by combining traditional knitting yarns with unconventional fibres that include hair, rafia, and metal, playing with scale and incorporating plaiting, knotting and beadwork to create fabrics that seem to bear little relationship to knitting, while owing it everything. The possibilities of knit are a constant inspiration. In 2003 I won the
Texprint Prize for Knit, and in 2004 I was awarded the Crafts Councils
Development Award. I design personal collections to sell, and collaborate
developing fabrics specifically for fashion houses, past clients include
Alexander Mcqueen and Michiko Koshino in London, Lanvin, Givenchy
and Emanuel Ungaro in Paris, Fuzzi and Etro in Italy. I have also
produced garments for Givenchys Haute Couture collections and worked
with Michiko Koshino on numerous showpieces. Updates for 2008 include further teaching at The Royal College of Art and Central St Martins, new clients include Julien Macdonald and Biba (garments for their fashion shows) also my work has been displayed in the windows of Harrods and Selfridges/London and recently Sheffield Millenium galleries commisioned a piece for "Get Knitted". Update for 2010: Jemma has begun her own range of hand knitting patterns, with the emphasis on using creative stitches to make wearable garments, this is something she's hoping to concentrate on in 2011, the first pattern is now on ravelry. (Chalice Lace Cable) Click here to contact Jemma Click here for Jemma's website
Statement: My mother taught me to crochet, knit and sew when I was a little girl. For many years I concentrated on intarsia knitting, making up my own colourful designs. Later I went on to train as a period costume maker and fashion & textiles teacher. After 30 years I returned to crochet when I accidentally came across freeform crochet and the work of the members of the International Freeform Crochet Guild on the Internet. I am fascinated by the 3D aspect of crochet for creating interesting textures and sculptural shapes as well as combining it with knitting. With a strong background in dressmaking, I am always experimenting with how freeform knitting and crochet could be used for garments and accessories. Last year I contributed a small coral reef to the Hyperbolic Coral Reef Exhibition of the Institute for Figuring. I am also working on further recycling projects using plastic bags and old clothes. Click here to contact Ildiko Click here to view more of Ildiko's work
Statement: Beyond the aesthetics
of knitting, I am interested in the social dimension of the craft,
people exchanging stories, recollections and memories when knitting
together. The 'Knitting In The Round' highlights this social
interaction. Knitters sit in a circle creating a large loop
sharing circular needles. Each stitch, symbolically containing
a thought, is entered into the circle and circulates around it. This
shared network is much like a lo-fi version of the internet. The
emphasis is on the activity as much as the fabric produced. The
resulting knitted loops are then exhibited as a sculptures that reference
the history of this activity. Photographs taken during the performance
are attached to the knitted loops. Click here to contact Shane Click here to view more of Shane's work
Statement: Donna Wilson graduated from Royal College of Art London in July 2003. During her time there she produced a range of work that included the knitted friendly creatures, the doily rug, wrapped cacti, the caterpillow and the hands on rug (a collaboration with Carmel McElroy). Her work is playful, tactile and bright, inspired by the everyday oddities and deformities of life. She likes to think of each of her creations as a character in her very own wonderland, where scale and perception are toyed with. 'The tactile quality of my work comes from my childhood spent in the Scottish countryside. It has had a strong influence on me both in my need for textural and organic forms. I enjoy using handcrafted techniques like felting, sewing, knitting and wrapping. My involvement with wool and felt allows me to create a closeness and cosiness that I want people to connect with.' For September's London Fashion Week 2008, Donna Wilson's much-coveted Creatures made their debut on the catwalk. Cyril Squirrel Fox and his friends were accompanied on the stage of the show by fashion designers, Steve J and Yoni P. Now sought after by fashionistas, Cyril and his friends will also take to the catwalk once again at fashion shows in Both Paris and Korea. Click here to contact Donna Click here to view more of Donna's work Woolley Wormhead (Ruth Paisley)
Statement: Hats are my primary focus - they
are the ultimate in versatile accessories. They provide warmth and
protection, but they also allow the wearer to express personality
and individuality in a way that may not be possible with other garments.
I have always been fascinated with Hats, from my first wool beret
as a child, through to the many diverse and amazing pieces that have
appeared in the many different cultures throughout time. Click here to contact Ruth Click here to view more of Ruth's work
Statement: My mother was a dressmaker and I
grew up making clothes from all kinds of textiles for my dolls and
teddies. I haven't lot this interest in making miniature things
but I also design, knit and crochet items of all kinds and sizes -
even to making a full size net for goalposts! Click here to contact Rita Click here for Rita's website
Statement: 'Keep & Share' is
an alternative luxury label, offering unconventional – yet infinitely
wearable – knitwear for both men and women. Each piece is designed
to satisfy over time, and is lovingly knitted by the designer, Amy
Twigger Holroyd and her small team of makers. The designs range from
scarves and slippers to jumpers, cardis and wraps, all created from
textured and patterned knits in off-beat colour combinations. Click here to contact Amy Click here to view more of Amy's work and details of her courses
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