Reykjavík Grapevine - 20.05.2016, Qupperneq 23

this exploratory spirit that led to the
creation of ‘The Weather Diaries’.
“If you look at fashion,” she says,
“there’s the designer in the middle, and
he works with photographers, hair and
makeup people, models, factories—he
surrounds himself with people in all
disciplines, hiring the best people
for him at the time. And if you break
down fashion into all those elements,
you discover something wonderful—
by asking questions like, ‘What is hair,
for fashion? What is photography, for
fashion?’ And there are, of course, peo-
ple who do it better than anyone else,
like Mario Testino and Nick Knight—
incredible fashion photographers.
But the question we asked with ‘The
Weather Diaries’ was: ‘What if you
don’t do fashion photography? What if
you try something else?’ So we choose
Cooper & Gorfer to do the photography
part of what a designer needs. The goal
was to show all these different aspects
of the designer’s work.”
The exhibition premiered in Copen-
hagen, fortuitously, during a recent
period of heightened international in-
terest in Nordic culture. It’s since tak-
en on a life of its own, touring to Tór-
shavn and Beijing, and after Reykjavík,
it goes to Seattle. “I think it’s trav-
elled a lot farther than fashion people
thought it would,” says Steinunn. “The
images are everlasting and beautiful.
They show a magical world. It’s great
to have designers from this part of
the world joining forces—we might
not be seen much on the world stage,
but when we come together this way,
someone definitely hears us.”
RHYTHM
KNITTING
This restless creativity has also pushed
Steinunn to test the boundaries of her
craft. “I’ve experimented so much with
knitting,” she says. “The question be-
comes: ‘Where can the world of knit-
ting take you?’ And it’s led me to make
installations and workshops in Swe-
den, Greenland, at The Kennedy Arts
Centre, and many other places.”
Steinunn’s Rhythm Knitting work-
shop plays on the connection between
knitting and music. “There’s a special
rhythm that goes with how you use
your hands when you knit,” Steinunn
explains. “I use drummers to help find
this beat. I’ve given this Rhythm Knit-
ting workshop in many countries, and
it’s always different. My favourite was
maybe in Nuuk, with a local drummer.
It was an unbelievable journey.”
The next edition will be closer to
home. During the upcoming Reykja-
vík Arts Festival, the Rhythm Knitting
workshop will take place at The Nordic
House, in collaboration with Icelandic
percussionist and former Sugarcubes
drummer Sigtryggur Baldursson.
“Sigtryggur has a huge parabola
drum,” Steinunn says. “I said to him,
‘I want the magic! I want it to sound
like the rhythm comes from the earth.’
With this rhythm, the knitting, the
lighting… you’ll travel somewhere.
That, for me, is what knitting does.
It’s magical. You make a loop, another
loop, another loop—it’s an engineer-
ing process, but if you find the fun
in it, that’s the way into knitting. I’m
hoping that with the workshop, young
people will find that interest, so I like
to get people up on chairs or tables, to
use the space rather than just their fin-
gers. I want people to look outwards,
to feel and understand the craft—the
base of it, and the beginning of it.”
SPINNING A
YARN
The beginning of Iceland’s knitting
tradition goes far back into the coun-
try’s history. An archaeological dig at
Hólar í Hjaltadalur, near Hofsós, has
revealed evidence that goes back as
far as the 1300s. “My brother is a pro-
fessor who’s involved in the dig up
there,” says Steinunn. “They found out
a church there that took 800 people.
In Iceland! This tells us that life back
then was bigger than we thought—it
wasn’t all so small, in little farms and
crofts. They found knitting needles
there, and a piece of knitted cloth.”
Steinunn has incorporated ele-
ments of Icelandic history into her
work, such as bows or pleats inspired
by the Icelandic national dress. Her
work also draws inspiration from Ice-
landic nature, and the art and culture
that springs from it. “I like to find tex-
tures in the little things in nature,”
she explains. “I’ve drawn from work
by photographers like RAX and Pál
Stefansson, and others, who’ve done
amazing books. I used their pictures,
and recreated the textures them in
knitwear—elements like lava, glacial
rivers, freshwater rivers, and the dif-
ferent types of snow. Frost-bitten snow,
freshly fallen snow, snow dunes, dirty
snow. The aurora borealis. And I made
the textures using suede, chiffon, mo-
hair, viscose, fur… whatever it takes. I
use the elements that are right in front
of me as inspirations for the textiles. I
love that—creating the fabric.”
“For me, that’s what fashion is
about,” she finishes, “this combina-
tions of the elements you find within
yourself, and then the magical output.
And if you look at Italian design, it’s
so precise and smooth and together,
whereas Icelandic design is very or-
ganic. We’re probably the opposite.
That’s what makes Icelandic design so
wonderful. We can’t forget that—it’s
precious. If we want to try to be Italian,
Italians do it better. But when we’re
Icelandic, that’s what we do best.”
SHARE: gpv.is/steinunn
MORE
STEINUNN?
You can further engage with Steinunn’s
work by going to an exhibition, taking part
in a workshop, dropping by her Reykjavík
boutique, or delving into her online archive.
Visit:
STEINUNN
BOUTIQUE
Grandagarður 17, 101 Reykjavík
Steinunn has a store in Reykjavík, in the
up-and-coming Grandi harbour area, near
the Valdís ice cream parlour. Swing by to
see her collection in the flesh.
Take part:
RHYTHM
KNITTING
at Reykjavík Arts Festival
The Nordic House, Sturlugata 5, Reykjavík
Steinunn will lead a Rhythm Knitting
workshop, alongside Icelandic drummer
SIgtryggur Baldursson, on Sunday May
22nd. Entry is free, but places are limited:
book yours at en.listahatid.is
Visit:
THE
WEATHER
DIARIES
The Nordic House,
Sturlugata 5, Reykjavík
This lush and immersive exhibition is open
at The Nordic House until July 5th. Head
over to see Steinunn’s dress installation,
as well as some stunning work by other
Nordic designers.
Online:
STEINUNN.
COM
Steinunn’s site contains a lot of great infor-
mation, including a biography, a list of her
exhibitions and workshops, and various
imagery from her long career in fashion.
You can also see her current collection in
the online store.