Sophia Ricotta
she/her
I must not unravel
My work explores knitting as a practice in which each repetition of the hands, each stitch falling into line, records the time it took to become. The artwork is the width of a standard diary page. It’s based on my memory of learning how to knit in my Nan’s living room. The two of us connected by two ends of the same ball of yarn. The small misshapen piece of knit in my hands had recorded our time together like the rings of a tree.
One piece represents my Nan, her dementia, and her life in a nursing home. Her everyday routine is documented through a repeated pattern, broken only by panels representing our weekly visit. The other piece represents my everyday. I find myself caught in cycles of repetition. Having the freedom to change, seeing all possibilities laid out before me, yet somehow staying the same.
I must not unravel - Nan
I must not unravel - Nan
I must not unravel - Nan (Detail)
I must not unravel - Nan (Detail)
I must not unravel - Nan (Fairisle Punch Card)
I must not unravel - Sophia
I must not unravel - Sophia (Detail)
I must not unravel - Diary Notebooks
I must not unravel - Sophia’s Diary
I must not unravel - Nan’s Diary