knitwork by Germain Koh is a lifelong project started in 1992. The project consists of unraveled recycled yarn being knitted into a continuous garment that keeps growing. Koh unwinds old, knitted jumpers and blankets found in op-shops and knits them into the existing garment. The garment has a consistent weight, despite the fact that lots of different size yarns are being mixed together. This was a deliberate choice by Koh by using thicker needles and combining the thinner yarns together. Having a consistent weight makes the garment feel more substantial even though it would take more materials to create. The work marks the passing of time. Hours of unraveling, rerolling and knitting.1
I’m inspired by the longevity of Koh’s knitwork. I have struggled to convey the unseen labour within my own practice. Koh is using the scale of the work to illustrate, to an audience that doesn’t knit, the time and effort that fiber arts often takes.
1 Germain Koh, “Knitwork, ongoing since 1992,” Germain Koh, accessed October 12, 2023, Germaine Koh Knitwork.
Sarah Jacquiline 