A round-up of goings-on in fibre and textile arts and crafts across Canada.
There is so much to love in this story: A prize-winning handknit baby sweater makes its way back to the knitter after more than fifty years in a most unexpected way. We love the idea that a knitter can always recognize their own work.
The Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto offers an online visit to their exhibit “SOCKS: Between You and Your Shoes.” Kate visited this in person a few years ago and found it to be a modest but lovely collection, and ideal for online exploration.
Another online exhbition is from the Saskatchewan Craft Council: The Flower People, featuring the the rich and colourful textile art of Melanie Monique Rose. The artist combines felting and material from collected blankets as a canvas for her exploration of identity as a contemporary Indigenous Artist.
Book news from D&T contributor Leanne Prain: Coming in Spring 2022, “Make It Meaningful” is a guide to tackling ambitious and significant creative projects. Leanne explains that “in response to the challenging times that we live in, this book will inspire readers to use their creativity to spur change in the world around them. Guiding readers through the various aspects of a project from ideation to final documentation, the book examines the relationship between creative leadership, community art projects, and social justice, and includes the perspectives of 23 creative instigators who have stretched the boundaries of what ‘art’ should or shouldn’t do.”
We were excited to learn about Simply Merino, a Vancouver-based clothing company with a small collection of 100% merino clothing, for children and adults. The Responsible Wool Standard-certified wool comes from Australia, but the clothing is all cut and sewn here in Canada. In addition to clothing, they sell accessories like scrunchies, wool dryer balls and nursing pads. They also offer a $10 craft/quilt box, a package of wool offcuts and remnants from their manufacturing, both reducing their waste and providing inexpensive, high-quality material for crafters.
Kim recently bought one of their sweatshirts and has declared her intention to wear it all winter.
The Toronto Knitters Guild has announced their programming for the winter, and you’ll recognize a couple of names on the speakers list from our contributor list.
The Craft Ontario Gallery has posted a Call for Exhibition Proposals for 2023.
Featured image by Vince Veras on Unsplash
