In September 2019 I was invited back to the Swell Sculpture Festival with a commission. Just Keep Going_Elements was a participatory work in which families could add their own crochet forms to a collective structure, guided by written instructions.
Amid the noise of the beach, my site was unexpectedly quiet. Adults and children sat on beanbags or on the grass, teaching each other to crochet in hushed focus, and many adults came alone. It felt like a sanctuary that had grown beyond my own family to include the community. At this festival I also set down the crochet hook and followed my children’s lead into finger knitting.
When I cut the Yarn down, it lay on the ground like driftwood. I carried it home with the branches, leaves and found objects participants had added, and realised the work no longer needed a fixed structure to exist.