2013 - Knitting with crocodiles
Haven't posted in a ridiculously long time!!!
Here are some images from 2013 :)
Subaqueous
Knit
Rebecca Arbon. 2013. Subaqueous Knitter. Performance Still.
Like a pixel is the smallest,
controllable element of a picture represented on a screen, a stitch is the
smallest, controllable element in a knitted work. The composition of both
stitches in a knitting pattern, and the pixel composition of digital images, is
arranged as a grid of squares.
Through pixilating images of my knitted works I am attempting to explore the
relationship between the handmade form and the digital image.
Rebecca Arbon. 2013. Subaqeuous Knit 3. Digital still
Embroidery is constructed (mostly by women) in hundreds of tiny
stitches which are visible on the front of the fabric…Software is constructed
(mostly by men) in hundreds of tiny pieces of code, which form the hidden
structure of the programme or interface…
Rebecca Arbon. 2013. Subaqeuous Knit 1 and 2. Digital stills
Each
of my knitted works narrates the laborious studio process. I indulge in a state
of meditation, using the monotonous motion of the hand relevant to the
traditional process of knitting to connect with the unconscious. For me the
oddity of knitting in a tropical region exaggerates the delicacy of the
connection I am trying to maintain with traditional crafts. I have begun
photographing my knitted works underwater – in pools and natural bodies of
water. I became drawn to incorporating water with my knitted works for its
subconscious, transformational, reflective and motional properties; seeing the
knitted work underwater seemed to reconnect my tropical surroundings with my
process.
As a process driven object
maker, I am intrigued by the symbiotic connection between the hand and the
form. I am fascinated by the importance of the hand in art history and how the
relationship between the artist and the hand is evolving with technology as we
become more removed from first-hand traditional craft experience and more
oriented towards observing the world through a screen. For me, contemporary
drawing and sculptural practices are cumulative processes; wholes that are
comprised of many small parts, akin to pixels.
Like a pixel is the smallest,
controllable element of a picture represented on a screen, a stitch is the
smallest, controllable element in a knitted work. Morphing pixelated images of
my knitted works allows me to explore the interrelationship between these
‘smallest controllable element’ and the role they play in the identity of an
object.
The composition of both these
‘smallest controllable elements’, such as stitches in a knitting pattern, and
the pixel composition of digital images, is arranged as a grid of squares.
By pixilation of images of my knitted works I am attempting to explore the
relationship between the handmade form and the digital image.
Rebecca Arbon. 2013. Subaquesous Knit - Morphing
