Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project

Class Info:
To support the Scottsdale Public Art Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project, Tempe Yarn will be holding free Hyperbolic Crochet classes once a month in January, February, and March. The first class will be held on Friday, January 16th at 6:00pm (watch our Event Schedule for future dates).

Participants should call ahead to register, as space will be limited. Yarn will be provided, but students should bring their own crochet hooks if they have them, or they may purchase them at TYF. Previous experience with crochet (chain and single crochet stitches) is helpful, but not necessary.

Group Info:
Tempe Yarn will also be hosting a Coral Reef Project group every Friday night at 6:00pm, beginning on January 2nd. We are planning to contribute two sets of pieces for the Scottsdale Public Art installation: one made entirely from natural fibers (wool, cotton, etc.) and another created with man-made fibers (plastic, acrylic, nylon, etc.). Group participants should bring or buy their own hooks and yarn (or man-made materials) to crochet with. For those who don't crochet, knitted and/or felted pieces are perfectly acceptable, as well as free form knitted/crocheted shapes to complement the more formulaic Hyperbolic pieces.



So what is a Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project?

"Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef"

"The Great Barrier Reef stretches along the coast of Australia in a riotous profusion of color and form unparalleled on our planet, forming one of the acknowledged wonders of the natural world. Pollutants so threaten this fragile marvel that scientists now believe the reef will be devastated in coming years.
As an homage to the Great One, Margaret and Christine Wertheim of the Institute for Figuring have instigated a project to crochet a woolen reef - an enterprise that now involves hundreds of people around the world. A wide taxonomy of reef-like forms - including loopy kelps, fringed anemones, curlicued corals, and tendrilled jellyfish - may all be simulated using the techniques of 'hyperbolic crochet'.

Over the past three years, the Crochet Reef has grown into a vast installation involving many thousands of models and dozens of aesthetically distinct 'sub-reefs' that occupy thousands of square feet of exhibition space.

Scottsdale Public Art is proud to announce that, in April 2009, the installation will be exhibited at the Scottsdale Civic Center Library in Arizona.

The Scottsdale Public Art program will be exhibiting the Institute for Figuring's (IFF) reef as well as making one of our own. This Crochet Reef will allow people to participate and experiment using modest, inexpensive materials. By participating you can learn a new skill or refine an existing one. A diverse group of individuals will contribute the individual pieces and join together with others to make Scottsdale's own crochet coral reef." (quoted from Scottsdale Public Art promotional materials)

For more information on the Institute for Figuring's reef, click here: The IFF Coral Reef

For more information on the Scottsdale Public Art Coral Reef Project, click here: Scottsdale Public Art Coral Reef