For the past year or so when I have been traveling out and about, I have been coming across several pieces of knitted artwork adorning bollards, post-boxes, and trees. I recently came across a knitted teddy bear's picnic complete with union jack flags adorning the top of a post-box in Diss, I think it had been created to celebrate the Queen's jubilee. I really love discovering these pieces of knitted artwork, I find them fun, charming, quirky, and cheerful and this has gotten me wanting to look up other pieces of knitted artwork and find out about the artists who are making them.
Mulyana
Mulyana is an Indonesian artist who is best known for his knitted and crochet underwater world.
Mulyana was born and brought up in Bandung, West Java and studied art education at Indonesian Education University, Bandung. He later went on to learn crocheting whilst attending workshops in a bookshop in Tobucil. When asked what he likes about textiles Mulyana replied “Textile is the closest element to daily life. Something close and attached to our body through which we express our personality and feelings… Textiles have special characteristics and a large spectrum of colours. It is very light in weight and easy to transport”. Mulyana uses the techniques of crocheting, knitting, yubiyami (finger knitting) and sewing to create his masterpieces. When asked about what influences his work Mulyana responded “God is my main influencer. His creation is always new, growing and developing in time. For me, becoming an artist is an act of worship and a call to spread His teachings, share my knowledge, and at the same time release anxiety and communicate with other human beings”. He has also been influenced by the puppet and Japanese manga television shows he used to watch as a child.
Kate Jenkins
Kate is a British artist based in Brighton. She graduated from the University of Brighton in 1995 with a degree in fashion textiles with business.
Jenkins uses knitting and crochet to create beautifully quirky and skilful depictions of food. When asked what inspires her about food and to describe her artwork Kate responded, “I love the fact that the possibilities with food as a subject matter are endless…different countries…categories, styles…I like to create something beautiful combined with something amusing…I am best known for my knitted and crocheted depictions of popular dishes and my nostalgic take on everyday items”.
Sarah Mosteller
Sarah was raised on the Gulf coast and now lives in New York City. Mosteller is a knitting artist, but instead of knitting with wool she knits with wire.
Sarah first discovered her passion for knitting whilst she was laid up in bed for 4 months following an accident in Northern California whilst she was in college which saw her break her back. During her recovery Mosteller found knitting very therapeutic and meditative. Upon recovering Sarah returned to her studies in Studio Art and Art History and began experimenting with how she could merge her love of knitting with her studies in sculpture. Eventually Mosteller discovered that the best way to do this was to use braided steel wire, particularly hanging wire.
When discussing the themes of her work Sarah explained that, “Knitting and weaving are art forms that are stereotypically seen as solely feminine and ‘crafty’. I aim to break that limitation by uniting the idea of craft with fine art, as well as redefining ideologies of feminine art forms”. Mosteller went on to state that her work also reflects the human condition, “…Delicate and hard, fluid and rigid, weak and strong: the paradoxes found in my creations echo those…in our daily…experiences…I think humans are full of contradicting ideas that seem to work together. In the middle of all that is where I believe our identity rests”.
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