December 19, 2024
Art
Grace Ebert
“Healing Blossom” (2023). Photos by Pearl Sijmons, courtesy of the artist
When Joana Schneider moved to The Hague, she began to visit the beach regularly, which became a fruitful source of inspiration.
When Joana Schneider moved to The Hague, she began to visit the beach regularly. Having spent her childhood in Munich, the sea was a novel and a fruitful source of inspiration. Soon, the fishermen working in the harbor caught her eye.
“There was something so intriguing about their world, which seemed to straddle this line between rugged labor and delicate artistry,” Schneider tells Colossal. “They were using knotting techniques, traditionally seen as feminine and delicate, but on a much larger scale, with heavy-duty ropes.”
“Freckles” (2022)
The artist quickly connected what the anglers created with the traditions of textile art and began to source their leftover rope. Now based on
KNSM Island in Amsterdam, Schneider continues to utilize the mariner material in her large-scale sculptures. “I spend days untangling the nets before I can start working with them. Then, I dry the ropes in the sun, which gives them this oceanic scent,” she adds.
“Light Child” (2023)
Once desiccated, the materials often become the structure for thin, colorful yarn the artist wraps around the strands. The finished works are sometimes abstract and others boldly figurative, portraying exaggerated facial features in coiled, hand-stitched patchwork.
Detail of “Light Child” (2023)
The process is labor-intensive, but the slow, methodical movements are part of what Schneider is drawn to. “Each turn of the yarn around the rope is a quiet, focused act. There is something very grounding about it. The rhythm of wrapping, the gentle tension of the yarn, and the soft texture of the fibers create a peaceful space where the world outside seems to fade away,” she says. The resulting works retain evidence of this meticulous process as coils large and small swell outward in perfectly concentric circles.[…]
More: Coiled Fishing Rope Sculptures by Joana Schneider Twist Organic Shapes into Otherworldly Forms
