yarn bombing etc

Yesterday I was at the Bata Shoe Museum looking through a book on knitting and yarn bombing in their special exhibition on socks. I didn't realize that putting yarn on stuff was something people did. Apparently, yarn bombers knit covers directly onto trees, poles, fire hydrants, etc. Here's an example by Kari McDonald, an American art student:

Defeat the Sorrow, by Kari McDonald (2009)

Defeat the Sorrow, by Kari McDonald (2009)

That looks like one warm tree. I like how you could almost miss the yarn at the bottom of the tree but it transitions into something more colourful. I really wonder how this stands up to the elements and if the authorities cut it off the tree when it gets wet and soggy. 


Here's another example by "Knitted Landscape" (two Dutch artists) who seem to have a similar purpose as McDonald - providing a colourful contrast to an otherwise bleak winter landscape:

by Knitted Landscape (Iceland, 2007)

by Knitted Landscape (Ireland, 2007)

Lastly, one of the most awesome things ever created - a knit cover for a motorcycle by Theresa Honeywell:

Everything Nice, by Theresa Motherwell (2006)

I couldn't even tell that this was a motorcycle at first. It just looked like a little girl's bike. Not that this would be the first pink vehicle - I'm reminded of the pink Hello Kitty motorbikes in Korea. Honeywell really takes advantage of the sweet girly aesthetic of knitware; her other works are knit guns and tools. Lovely!