Book Launch for KnitKnit Issue #3
At Printed Printed Matter, Inc.
Saturday, January 31, 5 - 7 PM
Printed Matter, Inc. is very pleased to announce a book launch for KnitKnit Issue #3, an artists' periodical dedicated to the intersection of traditional, utilitarian craft and contemporary art in all media. The book launch will take place at Printed Matter, located at 535 West 22nd Street between 10th and 11th Avenues, on Saturday, January 31, from 5 - 7 PM.
Conceived, curated and produced by artist Sabrina Gschwandtner, KnitKnit reflects a growing cultural interest in traditional crafts informed by a contemporary, critical perspective. Traditional crafts offer a mode of working in which form and function are constantly engaged, situating them squarely in the center of contemporary art polemics. Perhaps as a reaction against both the homogeneity of mass market culture and the contemporary art that responds to it by mimicking its slick and seamless forms, young artists are discovering and creating craft and craft-like practices that have both utility and a low-tech accessibility. Heirs to the do-it-yourself legacy of hippy, punk rock, and 'zine cultures, this new generation of craft artists are not necessarily against technology but rather employ existent materials, techniques, and sensibilities in a more immediate, hands on approach to art making. Knitknit acts not only as a forum for these ideas and practices - with interviews, reviews, profiles and articles - but also as an instructive tool (Issue #2 consisted almost entirely of arts and crafts making directions and recipes). In addition to the publication, Knitknit also produces, often in collaboration with other organizations, a wide range of other activities, including exhibitions, film and video screenings, and musical performances.
Printed Matter's reception for KnitKnit Issue #3 will feature a vitrine installation of textile projects, a screening of handcraft-inspired film and video, and a live button-making presentation by the New York chapter of the Church of Craft. Artists whose work will be shown at the reception include:
Jim Drain, Ara Peterson, Liz Collins, Peter Coffin, Sarah Shapiro, Beige Records, Sarah Dunbar, Jesse Alexander, Rebecca Vaughan, Stephen Beck, Michele Smith, Althea Merback, Emily Drury, and Habu Textiles.
KnitKnit issue #3 contents include:
— Writings of 19th century architect Gottfried Semper (introduced by Brian Sholis of Ten Verses)
— Everyday Knitting - Treasures from a Ragpile, book review by Emily K. Larned of Booklyn
— "Clotheslines in Winter" article by Emily Drury
— Beadwork by Joe Beuckman of Beige interview by Cory Arcangel
— "Althea Merback Knits Miniatures" article by Emily Spivack
— "Message Delivery Notice: Failure" Kathy Grayson of Deitch Projects on Sarah Shapiro's embroidered emails
— "Home Sewn: Three Centuries of Stitching History" at the New York Historical Society review by Elana Berkowitz
— Foldable House concept by Sarah Dunbar
— Review of specialty yarn shop Habu Textiles by Rose White
The first 300 issues come with a special cover silkscreened by designer Andrew Kuo, and hand-dyed and sewn by Sabrina Gschwandtner. KnitKnit Issue #3 is available for $16 on Printed Matter's website, www.printedmatter.org, along with 15,000 additional titles. For additional information please contact Max Schumann, Manager, Printed Matter, Inc., at (212) 925-0325. KnitKnit's website is http://www.knitknit.net.
Printed Matter, Inc. is an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1976 by artists and art workers with the mission to foster the appreciation, dissemination, and understanding of artists' books and other artists' publications. Printed Matter has received support, in part, through grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York Arts Recovery Fund, The Altria Group, Inc., Art for Art's Sake, Milton & Sally Avery Arts Foundation, The Cowles Charitable Trust, Fifth Floor Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation, Heyday Foundation, The New York Community Trust, LEF Foundation, The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Women's Studio Workshop, and private foundations and individuals worldwide. Printed Matter, Inc. is not affiliated with, nor a division of, any other non-profit organization.