Embrace the Holes: Glitch Knitting
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So maybe you’re just starting out as a knitter and you’re dropping stitches like they’re hot. You’ve got holes in your fabric and it’s giving you heartburn!
First, on a practical note, this tutorial on dropped stitches will help you out.
Second, the glitch movement will make you feel better!
Japanese artist and musician Nukeme has hacked a knitting machine to intentionally create holes in knitted fabric. For him, the holey scarves are a physical expression of the glitch movement.
What is the glitch movement? you ask.
According to Wikipedia, it’s a style of electronic music that “adheres to an aesthetic of failure” (!) where malfunctioning audio noises (like hiss, electric hum, skipping and distortion) are a central part of the music.
So, it’s an aesthetic that literally celebrates glitches. Hence, the holes in scarves. Let’s see the machine in action:
Look at that knitting machine spit out intarsia like a pro! Wow.
Design and tech have always had a close if not slightly fraught relationship, but this melding of handicraft and hacking is all lovey dovey cooing and butterfly kisses. Check out the cool glitch textiles being produced around the world!
Glitchaus by Jeff Donaldson produces data driven scarves, including error scarves, bug scarves and Nintendo scarves!
Broolyn-based artist Philipp Stearns creates binary blankets from Word, iTunes and OSX binary files.
How cool are these? Error messages and no-signal noises have never looked more appealing.
So, what do you think? Can you embrace the holes? Is it too homeless-chic (aka. Derelicte!) or a beautiful meditation on the upside or failure?
Whatever you think, if you’re struggling with dropped stitches, find solace in the glitch movement. And if some snarky know-it-all points out the holes in your knitting, just sniff and say, “Oh, you didn’t know? This is a glitch textile. It’s all the rage right now.” [h/t The Creator’s Project]
