Art Imitating Coral /  by CHRISTINA HARKNESS

Today I have been working on a presentation that I will be giving to the Millstream Knitting Guild in April. The public will be invited so if you are in the Salem, Oregon area on April 9th, stop into the Willamette Heritage Center from 10-12. I will be chatting about the PNW Community Coral Reef and folks will be welcome to take a peek at some of our donations so far, pick up some donated yarn, and gather some inspiration for corals and critters.

Going back through some old photos I have of corals that I used as inspiration for pieces has been kind of entertaining. Whenever I am feeling uninspired, it helps to pull up some google images and then I start by simply recreating the shapes that I see. For folks who knit or crochet strictly by using a pattern, this can be a challenge. I would encourage you to simply look at a coral form as a series of increases and decreases. Pick a spot on the coral where you want to start and then work your way through it. If I an crocheting, I generally start in the center and work my way out. If I am knitting, I tend to work from the outside and decrease to the center. (This helps to avoid having several double pointed needles and very few stitches at the beginning of a project which I find to be a bit of a pain.) The reality is, you write the rules on how you want to do it and there are no hard and fast rules. This is why freeform knitting and crocheting is so fun! I can guarantee, there are very few other parts of our lives that let us write the rule book.

Boxes of Happiness /  by CHRISTINA HARKNESS

I seem to recall that I had initially set the goal of posting here every week. Well, it didn’t take too long for that to go out the window!

In all honestly, I did create a playlist on YouTube last week that I had intended to post here and after I put it together, I sat back and promptly forgot. So, I will post it now and let you know that I chose videos of other fiber art reefs to show folks how your donations all go together to create one installation. I have had questions from crafters whether they should create one item or create an installation ready chunk of corals connected together and I would encourage you to keep your donations singular unless your desire is to create a large piece that is it’s own “ecosystem”. Having individual pieces of corals will allow us to manipulate them into the best place in the reef for their design and color.

I am starting to receive shipments of corals and critters from organizations and individuals and it is so exciting to open the boxes and see the wonderful things that you have been creating. Thank you!

Don’t forget, if you are in the Eugene, OR area next Saturday, stop by the Eugene Textile Center between 10-3 for inspiration and a chance to ask questions or to just sit and craft with us. Hope to see you there!

A Perfect Alliance /  by CHRISTINA HARKNESS

Very excited to announce that the PNW Community Coral Reef Project has partnered with the non-profit Coral Reef Alliance out of California. They will be providing educational materials at our installation and helping to encourage fiber artists and crafters to get involved. I have visited their wonderful website and used their images to gain inspiration on making my pieces for the reef and it’s nice to know that they have knitters on staff who are excited to participate.

Additionally, I took a trip up the coast yesterday and dropped off informational postcards at the Latimer Quilt and Textile Center in Tillamook, OR and at Coastal Yarns in Cannon Beach, OR. Hopefully I will be able to arrange a crafting day at Latimer sometime in the future. Stay tuned!

For my inspirational suggestions today, I would like to point you to the playlist that I have created on Youtube which include videos on past coral reef installations as well as instructional videos on how to create different elements of a fiber art coral reel. You will find that some of these patterns are in languages other than English but I have found them to be instructional as someone who is fluent in knitting and crochet. I hope you will enjoy!

Inspiration and Aspiration /  by CHRISTINA HARKNESS

This morning I wanted to talk about sources of inspiration that I go to online when I am considering what to do next in creating corals for the PNW Community Coral Reef. The Institute for Figuring , the originators of the idea of a fiber art coral reef, have just opened another satellite reef in Baden Baden Germany and over 40,000 coral pieces were created for the installation. I follow several accounts and hashtags on Instagram that post photos of the various satellite reefs by following #satellitereef #crochetcoralreef #hyperboliccrochetcoralreef #christinewertheim and the account crochetcoralreef. Additionally, I follow non profit groups on Instagram that are alligned with coral and marine conservation and preservation, such as The Ocean Agency. Often times, I will be inspired to create corals from what I see in their photos of actual reefs. Following #coralreef #reef #coralbleaching and #coral will also pull up these images for me. One source of inspiration that might not be so evident are home aquarium accounts. By looking at clean, up close photos of corals in saltwater aquariums, it is easier to see how the corals are structured and thus, easier to figure out how to create them. You can find these accounts through #aquarium #aquariumhobby and #saltwateraquarium.

Finally, think about other artists and artistic disciplines that may create corals. Staying in the world of fiber, Vanessa Barragao’s installations are incredibly inspiring and Mulyana will always be my personal favorite. I have also fallen in love with Courtney Mattison’s ceramic corals.

Hopefully that will give you some eye candy to inspire your next creation!

Making Corals From Recycled and Plastic Materials /  by CHRISTINA HARKNESS

One of the topics that I hope to emphasize in the PNW Community Coral Reef is the issue of plastics in the ocean. I have been able to make one hyperbolic shape from plastic lacing that I found in a resale shop and this morning I made two anemones from sturdy bubble wrap packing materials that I got in a shipment a few weeks ago and I crocheted their tentacles out of jelly yarn, something that I also used to make a ghost net for the display.

For the anemones, I simply made a cone of the bubble wrap and taped the side shut with clear packing tape. I then took my smallest, sharpest crochet hook and poked holes around the top far enough apart to prevent the plastic ripping and crocheted the jelly yarn into the plastic wrap, making tentacles with double crochet and leaving three crochet stitches between each tentacle. They are a little top heavy so I have stuffed them with additional packing material to make them a little more sturdy.

I also want to emphasize making corals with recycled materials. Last year I got a new sofa that was wrapped in this white fabric. I saved it and recently cut it up into strips and crocheted it with a huge hook into a hyperbolic shape for the bleached area of the reef.

Another thought that I have had but haven’t had a chance to do yet is to take something plastic, like a milk jug or Styrofoam like a mini cooler, and cover it with bleached corals as if someone has thrown it into the ocean and nature is trying to cope but not succeeding.

So, if you are thinking of making a statement piece for the PNW Community Coral Reef, I would encourage you to look around your environment and use something at hand.