Yarn Bombing

Book excerpt: When Yarn Bombing was first published in 2009, the idea that knitted and crocheted objects could be used as a political act of resistance was brand new. Ten years and thousands of pink "pussy" hats later, the art of knit and crochet graffiti has entered the public zeitgeist - a cultural phenomenon that shows no sign of slowing down. Yarn bombing is an international guerrilla movement that started underground and is now embraced by crochet and knitting artists of all ages, nationalities, and genders. Its practitioners create stunning works of art out of yarn, then "donate" them to public spaces as part of a covert plan for world yarn domination, or fashion them into personal political statements. Yarn Bombing the book is a wildly colorful guide to covert textile street art around the world; it also includes over 20 amazing patterns, provides tips on how to be as stealthy as a ninja, demonstrates how to orchestrate a large-scale textile project, and offers revealing information necessary to design your own yarn graffiti tags. This tenth anniversary edition includes a new foreword by the authors and a new chapter that includes many infamous examples of yarn bombing over the past ten years. Subversive and beguiling, this new edition of Yarn Bombing demonstrates that the phenomenon of knit and crochet graffiti is more relevant than ever, especially in these troubled times.