devotion

We live in a fragmented world, split by disconnections between people on both the large and small scale.

From border imperialism, racism, and homophobia to disagreements between friends, there are endless ways we isolate ourselves from one another, even while living in community.

I became hyper aware of the feeling of isolation during the pandemic and wanted to create an art piece which represents the abundance of connections that do exist to combat my negative feelings.

From then, I have been drawing and painting patterns to express this feeling of connection, but everything really started making sense when I began to crochet.

Crochet is a form that requires an artist to constantly build connections. To create a piece of fabric, you create loops and knots that intertwine with one another in rows which connect.

There is always room to keep going, adding more stitches to extend what you have already built. Yarn is the perfect material which expresses the devotion of being a part of a community because it requires patience and repetition, something we must possess in order to be there for ourselves and the people around us.

Thinking about the practice of connecting with people in authentic and positive ways while making fiber art has inspired this project.

From September 2022- April 2023, a group of more than 70 artists have collaborated on this installation as the senior capstone project for my Critical Social Thought major.

To begin connecting with fiber artists on campus, I joined the Knit Happens club which meets once a week to crochet and knit together; from the beginning of the academic year, I have participated in the club.

In addition to asking club goers to participate, I have been approaching people I see creating fiber art on campus and asking if they would like to participate in this project. By exchanging fiber art, we had to coordinate with one another and connect in a way which would not have otherwise been possible.

Small scale divides between people create ripples which later become waves. How we choose to show up everyday dictates the ability of a community to both survive and thrive; community is everything.

Together we can create beautiful things.