YARN THEORY

Yarn Theory    
The exhibit Runs April 25-May 17, 2009 
PS122 Gallery                                                         
150 First Avenue, NY, NY 10009        
(enter on 9th St. between First Ave. and Ave. A)

Gallery Hours: Thursday-Sunday, 12-6 pm 
212.228.4249 www.ps122gallery.org 

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR PHOTOS OF THE INSTALLATION

Participating artists:

·        Ted Ashton

·        Emily Barletta

·        Sarah-Marie Belcastro

·        Nancy Cohen, Rita Cohen and Anschel Schaffer-Cohen

·        Christine Domanic

·        Kate Fenker

·        Amanda Gale

·        Miyuki Kawamura

·        Martha Lewis

·        Margaret Oomen

·        Gail Rothschild

·        Daina Taimina

·        Daniel Yuhas

Curated By Martha Lewis

Events Organized By Karen Eubel

Press Release:

“Yarn Theory highlights the vibrant and deep interrelationship between the sciences, mathematics, crocheting and knitting. From mathematicians looking for clear and visual ways to model their theorem to home-knitters and artists looking to create unique sculptural objects, the world of contemporary yarn work is rife with cross-pollination between the disciplines. The explosion in the popularity of knitting and crochet has yielded an interest in using the medium to go far beyond sweaters, socks, and wearables, moving into the worlds of geometry, biology, natural sciences, pushing the medium’s sculptural boundaries.

Highlighting the work of some of today’s most interesting practitioners, Yarn theory juxtaposes installations and art objects made with a scientific or mathematical basis as a starting point, and with mathematical models and items made explicitly to explain or clarify abstract concepts, which end up being compelling aesthetic forms unto themselves. Because of their incremental structure, the crafted shapes often mimic growth systems found in nature. Such correlations are being explored by today’s needle workers, many of whom are also scientists and mathematicians professionally.

This exhibit contradicts the popular notion- recently made famous by Larry Summers, when he was acting president of Harvard University *- that women are not as good at math and science as men are. Knitting and crocheting -traditionally seen as an appropriate occupation for women and girls- intrinsically requires much calculation to create the expansions and contractions necessary to model a garment from a piece of yarn.

Even in its most traditional or most intuitive, yarn work processes such as colored patterning, lace- making, sweaters, etc. all make ample use of ideas and problems which share common ground within the fields of math and science. Both knit and crochet offer a way to make flexible surfaces, increase and decrease evenly and cleanly, forms which can fold into themselves, become endless loops, or spiral out exponentially.

The internet has provided a unique forum for interacting that has upped the ante in the exploration of the possibilities inherent in transforming a strand of fiber into an object. The level of quality, dialog and experimentation being displayed on-line are exceptional. This exhibit seeks to draw on that richness and to bring some of this profound and exciting world into our own community. Included in Yarn Theory are artists, scientists and practicing mathematicians. The work exhibited here references the worlds of geology, geography, topological mathematics, fractals, geometry, animal behavior testing, probability, human and marine biology, and physics. Yarn Theory seeks to contradict the idea that math and science are boring, un-sensual, and not enjoyable. The exhibit focuses on the connection between the calculated and theoretical, and it’s visual, tangible and tactile incarnation: the knitted and crocheted sculptural object.”

Martha Lewis, Exhibition Curator

Boston Globe, January 17, 2005
“The president of Harvard University, Lawrence H. Summers, sparked an uproar at an academic conference Friday when he said that innate differences between men and women might be one reason fewer women succeed in science and math careers.”

PS122 Gallery is a 30 year old not-for-profit exhibition space which provides exhibition opportunities and support services for emerging and under-recognized artists. Please visit us online at http://www.ps122gallery.org.

Check out the websites of the artists involved in PS122 Gallery’s Yarn Theory Exhibition!

Emily Barletta http://www.emily-b.net/

Sarah-Marie Belcastro http://www.toroidalsnark.net/

Kate Fenker http://katefenker.com

Martha Lewis http://www.marthalewis.com/

Margaret Oomen http://resurrectionfern.typepad.com/resurrection_fern/

Gail Rothschild http://www.gailrothschild.com/

Daina Taimina http://www.math.cornell.edu/~dtaimina/

Daniel Yuhas http://tattingmydoilies.blogspot.com/

Ted Ashton http://www.math.uga.edu/~ashted/

Nancy Cohen, Rita Cohen, and Anschel Schaffer- Cohen http://nancymcohen.com

Miyuki Kawamura

http://www.toroidalsnark.net/mkexh2005/mkexh2005-Pages/Image5.html

Hallway Project

Robyn Love http://robynlove.com/

Outdoor Installation

Guerilla Knitters

Performance Event in May

Lisa Daehlin http://www.delisa.us/

 

EVENTS

Eugenia (left) stopped by one day while we were working on the fence. She came back to see the show with her daughter, Tanya (right) who is a mathematician.

 

 CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM SOME OF OUR EVENTS SCROLL DOWN

 

Saturday, May 16th, Lace Workshop with Lisa Daehlin was a big success.  Lots of people stopped by to see the show and the fence before it came down.   OPERAKNIT CABARET(with yarn antics by Flash Rosenberg and piano accompaniment by Louis Mendez), A BIG SUCCESS!

Lisa Daehlin’s performance in the PS122 mail theater was terrific!  She has a beautiful voice and chose songs related to knitting, spinning, embroidery and lace.  We even got to hear brand new music composed by Stefania de Kennessey.  Her accompanist, Louis Mendez, was wonderful, accomplished and witty, and Flash Rosenberg gave everyone a laugh or two (except when she showed us her grandmother’s embroidered shawl…we just ooooed.)  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 For more information about Lisa Daehlin see:
http://www.lisadaehlin.com/ SINGING
http://www.delisa.us/ KNITTING DESIGN

– many thanks to Performance Space 122, especially Derek Lloyd, for their and his generosity!

WORKSHOPS: 

 

I stole these pictures from Daniel’s blog: http://tattingmydoilies.blogspot.com/

 

Lisa, with needles in her hair and…