Knit and Matter: Material meaning making with amateur fibre craft

A new research project funded by the British Academy is being led by Dr Susan Jones to explore why people engage with fibre crafts, what it means to them, what matters when they make with yarn and how fibre craft works as a way to share what's important in everyday lives.

Although knitting is a popular everyday creative practice, its significance for meaning making in contemporary lives has not been fully recognised. The value of textile practice in meaning making has been overshadowed by narrow models of literacy which dominate formal education and public life and stereotypical views of amateur crafts have also meant that the significance of knitting as a creative resource for meaning making has been overlooked.  Dr Jones has sought to build on the rich conceptual connections between text and textile through a series of interviews with crafters. ‘Knit and Matter’ seeks to develop this further through a focus on material meaning making, through means which engage with the process of making itself. 

Find out more about the Knit and Matter project 

Read the Knit and Matter blog