Beanies adorn The Peaks sculpture on Ardmore St. Right:
trees have sleeves in Pembroke Mall. Photos by Marjorie
Cook.
Secret knitters have "bombed" Wanaka with yarn, keeping
locals guessing as to who is behind the colourful prank.
Over several days this week, sculptures have been capped with
beanies, trees have been sleeved and bike stands have
acquired socks.
Members of Wanaka's Creative Fibre Arts Group believe they
know who the enthusiastic knitters are but do not want to
spoil the joke by revealing their identities.
"I know where it originated from but she is probably being
modest. She's been a ringleader of spinning and weaving for
many years. She's a local inhabitant, a very enthusiastic and
skilled knitter," artist Gwenda Rowlands said yesterday.
"She found he had some things superfluous to her needs
and thought "That would warm the place up".
Fellow fibre artist Susan Manson said she believed a couple
of people were involved in "yarn bombing" and the idea was to
"stay under the radar".
Internationally, yarn bombing happened in June but Ms Manson
believed locals wanted to make a splash now, to coincide with
the recent Festival of Colour, the school holidays, this
weekend's Wanaka Arts Society exhibition and next week's
Autumn Art School.
"It is an arty month. It makes me smile seeing it ... I think
there are 10 to 15 locations, maybe," Ms Manson said.
Seeking out the yarn bombs could make a good holiday project
for families, and it has been suggested people look around
local cafes, shops and the library.
"There is a random one on the pedestrian crossing by the Four
Square supermarket. It is like playing hide and seek, or a
treasure hunt without eggs involved," Ms Manson said.
Websites note "yarn bombing" (also known as "graffiti
knitting", or "guerrilla knitting") is a type of graffiti or
street art employing colourful displays of knitted or
crocheted cloth, rather than paint or chalk.
The installations may last for years but are considered
non-permanent, and can be easily removed.
The practice is believed to have originated in the United
States.
World Wide Knit in Public Day (WWKiP) was launched in 2005 by
US woman Daniella Landes, who felt knitting need not be a
solitary activity for grannies.
The WWKiP website does not have a listing for New Zealand
public knitting events but elsewhere around the world,
knitting is celebrated in the week starting on the second
Saturday of June.
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