Encroachment

11 x 15 x 12 inches, handspun yarns, commercial yarn, canvas, wire, wood, plumbing components, rigid foam, gel medium

In “Encroachment,” two little brown wrens hop through a storybook scene landing on a strange metal objects. A metal hose and pipe encroach on this deceptively picturesque scene. They intrude on the lush knitted cushion of vegetation, which is bursting with green sage, fresh asparagus, and deep forest hues. It is streaked with lines of rose and chestnut brown. Soft yellow-orange buds pop from the surface here and there. Through the center of the marshland a wide swath of churned brown earth cuts a path.

The hose and pipe further mar the gentle landscape. The canon-like end of the pipe is aimed directly at the marsh wren. The bird’s black and nut-brown striped tail is raised in characteristic wren fashion. A sedge wren, a threatened species in New England, perches and surveys the scene from atop the arced hose. Whoever left this machinery on the marsh did so deliberately. The intruder has staked his claim.

I use knitting and yarn in my sculptures to draw people in. The yarn is both familiar and unexpected. It piques curiosity because it looks out of place. Connoting comfort, it does not threaten. It enables me to raise serious questions of environmental degradation in a gentle voice. The domesticity of yarn threads its way into the emotional world of the viewer. It elicits a connection to the knitted portrayal of the natural world, suggesting that environmental degradation threatens both bird habitats and human homes.

This work is currently traveling as part of the SustainABILITY exhibition organized by Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA). The exhibition goes to AQS Quiltweek in September 2023. To purchase, contact me at eve@evejacobs-carnahan.com.

Artwork and image ©2018 Eve Jacobs-Carnahan; photo by Paul Rogers, Stowe VT