Giant Crocheted Installation Of Urchins Floats Above City Marina

By: Kimberley Mok/Treehugger Crochet and other forms of handmade crafts are making a comeback, thanks to renewed interest in DIY self-sufficiency. But we’ve also seen crochet move from the domain of the home and into the streets, “crochet-bombing” cars, trees and even urban monuments in public spaces.

Based out of London and Seoul, Choi+Shine Architects constructed this large-scale installation reminiscent of sea urchins that use crochet techniques. Recently showcased at Singapore’s iLight Marina Bay Festival, The Urchins installation is meant to shine in the sunlight during the day, and glow as it is illuminated at night, creating the sense that these giants, crocheted marine organisms have come out of the water to amaze and delight.

The designers say that the concept was to create a “visual filter” and a “lacy room” of sorts where visitors can enter and feel a sense of wonder:

Seeing hovering and glowing lacy objects against majestic skyscrapers and dark water would make them pause and gaze. This momentary pause of the mundane routine of our life would hopefully give us an opportunity to find the poetry around us.

According to Contemporist, the crocheted structures are made out of white double-braided polyester chord woven in 20 segments, which are then attached to a metal frame, and hoisted up at the site. Each urchin is about 56 feet (17 meters) in size and weighs about 220 pounds (100 kilograms). The crocheted forms took a team of 50 people to assemble by hand over a period of two months in Boston.

Art is vital to the life and beauty of our cities, whether it’s in the form of grand-scale installations that make eerie music, or lace-inspired urban art that pays homage to local traditions, or an artwork of light that transforms derelict underpasses. Here in The Urchins, we find a bit of nature and soft-textured materials softening up the hard, gritty edges of a modern city, reminding us that life and nature continue to flourish. See more over at Choi+Shine Architects.

Cosmic Scientist / Report a typo