Bettina Homann – Die Struckerei (A Poem of Labour)

The thread of this knitted work by Bettina Homann was spun from local words: it consists of the lines of the poem ‘Poem of Labour’ by the railwayman and poet Alexander Anderson, in which he glorifies the hard working men in the Upper Nithsdale area. The hours of tedious and laborious work of spinning and knitting that went into this piece refer to the usually less than glorious work of women. It also refers to the all-consuming labour pains that accompany the process in which the artist gives birth to herself into the world. The work exhibited here at MERZ and nearby A’ the Airts was made by Bettina Momann and others, during the three weeks collage residency at MERZ in April with the Kolaj Institute.