Safe Passage on Ashland

Per the Chicago Public Schools' website:

The Chicago Public Schools has launched the Safe Passage program to increase children’s safety as they come and go each day. This section offers helpful tips to parents and children to keep students safe on their way to and from school, in their homes, in their neighborhoods before and after school, and throughout the school day. 

These measures were expanded after Mayor Emanuel authorized the shutdown of 50 public schools, largest school consolidation in American history. The new paths kids take to school often cross gang territory lines. Chicago is city where being "in a gang" can be as simple as living on a certain block. Check out This American Life's two part episode covering a South Side Chicago high school.

The day before school started, we put up three pieces on Ashland, along the Safe Passage route from the shuttered Trumbull Elementary School as part of our own #SafePassageProject. This is one of them. The next will be up here in the next few days.

Ruffled edges outside school, Madison, Winter

Lacing up at the school, Madison, Winter

Lace, spray paint and felt in Madison, Winter

Big post in Madison, Winter

Madison Roundup

From last winter. Upcycled lace.

Technical Difficulties

We've got a bunch of new work to post here but we're currently searching for a certain cable so we can get it off of our camera. In short? Patience.

What would REAL yarn BOMBING look like

Watching "Bomb It", a graffiti/street art documentary.

Take a look at the first 5 minutes and tell me how we've earned the title "yarn bombing."

Paint and lace on Northport

 Spray paint and manufactured lace sewn onto lamp post. January 6th (or so). It's still up.

Old school by Warner Park

Street leading to the Warner Park Community Center, Madison, WI. January, 2013

Northport and Lakeview hill

Big Dead Tree at the bottom of Lakeview Hill, Madison Wisconsin.
January 7th 11:00 am

12:00 noon

1:00 pm

2:00 pm

HOTTEA

Introduced to HOTTEA's work via VERSO's iPad newsstand issue.

Now feeling a bit discouraged and challenged.

Black Hawk Middle School

Upcycled lace doily spray painted with felted sweater circles sewn in vertical stripes. Across the street from the Black Hawk Middle School. January 3rd, 2013. Madison, WI

Some daytime and close-up shots as well.

p.s. We're in love with ishknits and want to have her babies. After inventing technology that would allow us to do that.

Lace on Northport

 Stop sign on Northport near the church. January 2nd, 2013. Madison, WI

Thought...

I take pride in the work I do that's put up illegally yet I envy and crave the installations other "yarn bombers" have. Anyone else?

Lace in the Lakeview Park

January 1st, 2013 Madison, WI

Material upcycled from a "last chance before it's turned into carpet" shop.

Is knitted graffiti and yarn bombing graffiti for white people?

This first came up at the moment we first got official press in TimeOut Chicago. On the same day (or at least week) that we got a write-up, the Tribune had a front page article detailing how fines for graffiti were going up and now were involving the parents of offenders.

On one page, graffiti was condemned. On another, a white girl was getting interviewed about hers. 

We were thrilled about the press but the coincidence engraved the hypocrisy into our organization.

Uptown and Stewart Elementary School Anti-Violence Gift

Here are the daytime pictures! We had a lot of help on this one and had the debut of a new member. Check out our Flickr set for the details.

See the rest of the photos after the jump...

Whew! That was a lot of work!

Here are a few pictures from the work up at Stewart Elementary.

We'll post up the whole story of why we TOOK OVER the Kenmore turnaround as well as bombed some of the school's property.... tomorrow after we get some of our finals work done. Right now, we're going to sleep.

See the rest after the jump...

Fast work at Wilson and Kenmore Pt. 2

With Spring Break nearing it's end and classes at Stewart Elementary about to start up again this Monday, we sprang into action and put up more work. Two bike racks, another pole, some clean-up stitches on the previous poles, and three skinny fence posts that will hopefully be a precursor to a larger striping project.

Let's just hope people find this work "charming" and "cute" so that it stays up and is seen as it was intended: Brightening and hopefully making people feel safe in a dark and sometimes violent entrance into an elementary school.