Shared Snood
a giant macramé to hold the community together
Image Credit: Kids Snood, hosted at TAWK. Image by John Lake
As part of SL:K 2019, Audrey Baldwin's Shared Snood project invited the audience to take part in the making of a giant macramé art work that combined macramé making, talks, and shared kai. This project invited the audience to take part in the making of an art object to hold space for discussions around building and maintaining conscious communities for future generations/tamariki. A children’s workshop was hosted by Te Ahi Wairua o Kaikōura (TAWK) and kids were taught how to knot friendship bracelets or contribute to panels making up the Kaikoura Snood. An adults’ workshop took place with conversations about the creation and sustaining of conscious communities. The sharing of stories, experiences and teaching of a new (if retro) skill brought people from different backgrounds together in a relaxed environment.
Image Credit: Kids Snood, hosted at TAWK. Image by John Lake
The macramé Snood was utilised as part of a performance by Audrey Baldwin in the SL:K Performing Arts Night. The group of performing artists inhabited the snood-space first, lifting it up and encircling themselves in the macramé sculpture. Baldwin then invited everyone to join in, leaning back whilst simultaneously supporting each other. With slight undulations, shifts in weight and pressure, the snood swayed gently as people adjusted their stance or angle. The tension was solely in the materials holding the people and space together. Borrowing a newly learned ritual from co-producer Amber Clausner; the artist led everyone in a “grapefruit” ceremony where they shared what they were grateful for. The snood was disbanded in a gently choreographed way and laid back on the floor.