June 2, 2024 | 12 – 3pm
Build a collaborative sculpture with artist Bonnie Meltzer. Participants will crochet around a common thread that travels from person to person connecting the art and the artists. Participants need to know how to crochet a second row in any stitch.
The uniqueness of this collaborative project is that everybody works on the same sculpture at the same time, crocheting around one very long rope that winds around and around; rows get connected together, and everyone is connected to each other by the common thread. Unusual materials, many recycled and not usually associated with crochet will be used, adding to the adventure. The project builds community by working in concert with the people on either side and across the table from each other to create something magnificent. The piece grows and shrinks, then grows again depending on the number of stitches and how the core meanders. There is no preplanned design; the participants are the designers in each event, yielding a unique artwork. There are many surprises on the journey and everyone has fun.
Bonnie Meltzer, a Portland artist, expresses complex and timely social issues through crocheted, fabric & found object sculptures with both humor and beauty. Until 2016 her work mostly reflected environmental subjects, but with the current fraying of our social fabric she felt compelled to add social justice themes.
The Burned Piano Project: Creating Music Amidst the Noise of Hate began with one family’s experience of antisemitism and reminds us of the larger context of rising hate crimes in Portland and the United States today. This exhibition celebrates how community can promote healing, build empathy, and grow understanding.