52 Forms of Fungi || #22

Clavaria zollingeri.  Dazzling, bright, ascending wisps of coral fungi incredulousness.  I've wanted to knit this species since I first laid eyes on a photo.  Its otherworldliness appealed to my senses and imagination. (which I suppose is a sense, isn't it?)  You know how sometimes you see something and think how it can't possibly be real?  Moments like these are what fuel my thirst for observation and inspire me to ponder the depth of what we are surrounded by.  I could never fathom it.  How sweet it is to coexist with such magnificent creatures!

Clearly, since this fungi grows in eastern North America, I will be obliged to at some point visit that area in the fall to look for some.  Even if I never find it, I am at least happy to know that it's just out there being amazing.  As fungi does.

As with the Lactarius indigo, I would like to thank Berroco for providing me with the yarn for this fungi!!  It is made with Ultra Alpaca Light in Viola.  Oh, stitch definition...  Vibrant color scheme...  Soft and cozy...  I'll never get enough of Ultra Alpaca!  Good thing I've got a few more species to go with the generous support Berroco has provided to my project.  Thanks, guys!

I also want to put this out there - if there's a fungi out there that you LOVE and would like to see it in knitted form, please share a photo (with scientific name, if you know it) on my Facebook page!  Even though the project has extended into a 2nd year, I am committed to finishing all 52 forms... suggestions are welcome!

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project. Check out more of the forms from this project.

Wall Hangings || Turkey Tail

Meet "Turkey Tail", a wall hanging inspired by the turkey tail fungus.  I created this piece at the same time as "Riot II" this past summer, but unfortunately never had a good opportunity to get photos of it in an open space with good natural light... until now!  The individual polypores were knitted and then mounted onto a large piece of elm bark.

52 Forms of Fungi || #20

This mushroom holds a special place in my heart.  While I have no idea what species it is, this is a replica of one of my favorite mushrooms that I encountered on my visit to the Pacific Northwest last summer.  We were on a coastal trail surrounded by ferns and, well, mosquitos, and there was an eerie darkness under the trees near the creek bank where it was found.  I won't forget that moment for a long time.  Blackish red russula?  What do you mycologists think?  The actual mushroom was a little more reddish than my interpretation.

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #19

I've been working diligently on these for several weeks now to incorporate into a wall hanging (more on the finished product soon).  These are one variation on turkey tail fungus.  I'd like to make more using a different color palette - when you look up photos of this species there are so many different shades and patterns.  I love the contrast!

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #16

Aseroe rubra, or anemone stinkhorn, is one of those organisms where what appears to be land borne and sea borne collides.  Truly one of the wonders of nature, this beauty grows in the tropics as well as South Carolina (your confusion is as great as mine) where it has apparently been introduced.  The unique construction was a challenge but fun to create!

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #14

When we had just arrived at the cabin for our weekend in southeast Oklahoma several weeks back, I was poking around in the woods with my camera and happened upon this really unusual, leathery, cup shaped fungus.  After a little research I came to find out that this fungus is called devil's urn, and it is one of the very first species to appear in springtime as the forest comes out of dormancy.  They really are a sight to see, with the brownish exterior and smooth, black interior.  The blend in very closely with their environment and are often found on downed tree limbs.

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #13

There are many types of coral fungi that are incredibly eye catching, so I doubt this will be the first species you see here.  This one in particular is known as Clavulinopsis corallinorosacea, and it is found in Australia.  I haven't been able to find much about this specific type of Clavulinopsis other than photos of it, so if anyone has information please send it my way!  But regardless, those colors!  Does this not look like some delicate sea life form that you would see on a snorkling excursion?  Lovely.

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #12

How amazing would it be to see one of these in the wild?  Lion's mane or bearded tooth mushroom (Hericium erinaceus) is quite rare, and will grow on dead/dying wood as well as parasitically on living trees.  It is also apparently edible with a slightly fishy taste and has medicinal properties such as the potential to heal nerve damage.

As you can see, this took a LOT of i-cord.  I've been working on it for weeks!  I would love to make a huge one at some point, but don't I say that about every form that I make?  Once this project is finished I will probably pick out a few to focus on in more detail and at a larger scale.  Thank you for your patience while I cranked this one out... more fungi is to come for this week!

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #11

Fly agaric!  This is probably one of the most recognizable fungi out there.  They're just so bright and captivating (and toxic) and they always make me think of Mario Brothers.  These were really pretty fun to make.  Oh!  Here is some interesting cultural information/ethnobotany facts about the species.

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project

52 Forms of Fungi || #10

Two in one week!  I am dead set on this catching up thing.  This maze-like clump is called northern tooth and it's found mostly on maples, which is the tree it's on here.  You typically see it associated with wounds though, so I fibbed a little bit on that.  But in my defense, this is a terrible looking maple that was unfortunate enough to have someone plant it DIRECTLY underneath an overhead electric line (don't do that people!  ever!  unless you want your tree pruned in a very tragic way).  And in defense of the tree's feelings here, it's not ALWAYS terrible looking.  This little guy does have wonderful fall color; I just always feel bad about it's misfortunes as I'm jogging by...  Along with the other 5 maples planted in line with it, ALSO under the utility lines.  But I digress...

Here are two links to more information about northern tooth.  I typically like to post the Mushroom Expert profiles with each of these forms, but for some reason it didn't have any photos showing the growth habit that is portrayed here, so that's why I included the second link.

Northern Tooth....... one  ||  two

This structure was knitted as part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, through which I will knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013. Check out more of the forms from this project.

52 Forms of Fungi || #8

Parrot fungi!  These two are a couple of variations on this species which really stuck out to me when I was flipping through my Audubon mushrooms field guide.  Apparently they are edible and grow near conifers across North America.  The actual mushrooms are very glossy and slimy looking.  I experimented a little with using a gloss spray, but it didn't work out on the knitted material at all, unfortunately.  I'll keep brainstorming on this aspect, since I'm sure it will come around again with a different species.

It's funny, I'm noticing that after I complete a phase of this project the pieces end up on display somewhere in my house.  The enoki mushrooms are sitting on our mantel, and I just put the little parrots in my Norfolk pine in the living room.  The jack o lantern fungi are still hanging out on my knitting shelf, because I'm working on a larger installation for them -- more details on that very, very soon!

These fungi were knitted as a part of my 52 Forms of Fungi project, where I knit one different type of fungi for every week of 2013.  Check out some of the other forms I've knitted so far.

52 Forms of Fungi || #7

Enoki mushroom!  We're getting a little culinary this week.  This is the cultivated appearance of the enokitaki mushroom, which is orangey brown in the wild.  I always love looking at them in the grocery store, because just one little clump seems to have hundreds of tiny stalks and caps. For the sake of trying to stay on track with this project, I decided against going full scale... maybe another day.

They're just so neat looking.  I've never eaten them before though, have you?  Can anyone recommend a recipe?

Check out some other posts from the 52 Forms of Fungi project, where I knit a different type of fungi for every week of 2013.   In April, I vow to catch up!

52 Forms of Fungi || #5

Lately, I've been experimenting with a species commonly referred to as "Jack-O-Lantern fungus", and decided to use it for my 52 Forms of Fungi project.  Folk stories say that the mushroom's gills glow in the dark, hence the name.  Some sources tout this as a load of bull, but if you've witnessed this yourself I'd be interested to hear about it... These knitted forms do not glow in the dark, to clarify; I just thought that was a fascinating tidbit.

If you're familiar with Jack O Lantern mushrooms, these may not look quite right because they are normally found in clumps of many mushrooms.  As per my guidelines for this project, I'm only doing individuals but I AM working on several more of these for a project in the near future.

Check out more of my 52 Forms of Fungi posts

Decomposition: Colony III

This past week was a bit of a blur getting ready for my first gallery exhibition, but I am very honored to have been awarded Curator's Choice for my "Decomposition: Colony III" installation at Momentum: Art Doesn't Stand Still in Oklahoma City this year!  There were so many outstanding pieces and talented artists in the exhibition, and I feel very grateful to have shown my work alongside them.  I am even more overwhelmed, grateful, and encouraged to the curators for this event, PLUG Projects from Kansas City.  This has been a very humbling, inspiring and motivational experience, an opportunity that I owe Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition a lot for making possible as well.  While my drive to make art is still going strong because I simply enjoy what I do so much, it was encouraging to see the response to my work by peers and other artists.  I've made some great contacts and am seeing what a great, welcoming, art community is here in OKC.  Now I know for sure that I can't let my visions falter and go unrealized.

Aside from the enjoyment that came from nerding out over wood decay, moss, plants, and assembling all of my other materials, I think my favorite part of the exhibition was watching people observe my piece.  While I avoided hovering nearby because it made me nervous, it was fantastic to see people crouching down to look at the knitted mushroom caps up close, and further inspecting the other components of the installation - the exact response that I was hoping for.  I'm excited to continue on to the next phase (possibly two) of this series which will hopefully come to fruition in the next month or so (installation plans are already slated for April).

Thank you for all the support and kind comments.  I've checked off a major bucket list item here and can't wait to see what comes along next.

If you are unfamiliar with the Decomposition Series, you can see previous installations at the links below:

Decomposition: Colony I

Decomposition: Colony II

Decomposition: Stacks

Momentum OKC Starts Tonight

 After several hours of assembly, my installation is complete and the exhibition begins this evening!  The photos in this post are some behind the scenes shots - they don't show the final product though, so I hope you can come and see it in person.  If not, I will post photos next week of the installation in full.  Thanks for the encouraging response to this news via this blog and Instagram; your support means a lot to me!

BIG THING #2 aka 52 Forms of Fungi || #4

You might recognize these little guys from my Decomposition series, Colony I and Colony II.  Well, they are making an appearance again because of the second big thing that I alluded to last week... a third installation will take place this next week at Momentum: Art Doesn't Stand Still in Oklahoma City.  This is the first time I have taken part in a juried exhibition, and I am very honored to have been selected for participation.  All of the Decomposition phases have thus far taken place in an existing natural setting, so another unique aspect of this installation is that I am recreating a natural environment to use for placement of the knitted fungi replicas.  It is challenging, but also exhilarating.  It incites the same response in myself that I seek to encourage in observers... attention to detail, awe at natural complexities, and an awareness that there is so much more going on around me than I could ever in my lifetime begin to fathom.

I learned how to use a sander today, which to my delight was actually pretty fun.  This made me happy because woodworking is a long term aspiration of mine... so at least now I know I don't hate one of the main components!  In any case, if you live around the Oklahoma City area I hope you can come out to the show, this Friday or Saturday from 8 to midnight, at 50 Penn Place (across the street from Penn Square Mall).

52 Forms of Fungi || #3

 52 Forms of Fungi #3!

This form of fungi is a polypore known as Ganoderma lucidum.  Presence of these conks around the base of a tree suggest internal decay, the extent of which should be investigated further to determine degree of risk for failure.  So while they are beautiful, they're not such a great sign... However, they have been shown to have healing properties and are produced for herbal supplements.

The fruiting bodies themselves vary greatly in color and shape.  For this piece I went with the more brightly colored variation, but you will likely see more variations throughout this project.  I've been working on multiple forms of Ganoderma over the past few months, tweaking the pattern and colorwork and trying to come up with a result that I'm happy with.  This one is getting there, but I still have some work to do.

By the way, if you ever see these conks in the woods you can break them off and bring them home for decor.  The tissue is very woody and will not get smooshy or oozy or anything like that - I've got two on my fireplace mantel that I've had since 2007!

View more posts about the 52 Forms of Fungi Project.