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Knitting a way to keep web artist sane

Skeers to share skills and conduct Cowichan Sweater research
Joyce Carlson

Oh what a tangled web he weaves when Jude Skeers knits his unique creations.

Skeers has been a knitter for over 55 years, starting as a child in the days before television. All the children he grew up with, his sisters and other male playmates, learned, too. “It was not unusual,” said Skeers by phone from Australia. “What was unusual is that I continued to do it.”

Spending 38 years as a primary school teacher before retiring 10 years ago, Skeers said knitting was also very important to him during that time.

“It was how I stayed sane as a teacher,” he said. “I spent my whole working life with children under 10.”

Early on, Skeers knitted as an art form, creating flat geographic designs and landscapes. Some of his work included a series of 10-foot-high trees.

He then started knitting webs ranging in size from 10 centimetres to five metres wide. Most recently, he strung his webs along the veranda of an historic house for an arts festival. The webs, made from natural wool, were highlighted with colour lights.

While in Powell River, Skeers plans to knit and hang numerous webs in trees at the Magic Dome in the Lund area. Local business owner Roisin Sheehy-Culhane invited Skeers to come to Powell River where she operates Great Balls of Wool. She connected with him when she was in Sydney, Australia and now helps test-knit some of his patterns and designs.

“The webs are best when put in a natural environment,” explained Skeers. “They are quite delicate, ephemeral, beautiful, but not precious. They survive only a couple years because the sun affects them more than rain.”

He creates the webs with baling string and will teach a class on them at the Magic Dome, one of 13 workshops during his stay in which he will share his techniques. Powell River is the only place he will be offering courses while in Canada.

Skeers says he is interested in seeing some of the South American yarns found here because they are not available in Australia. “I’m looking forward to playing with them a bit.”

He makes his own needles so that they are different sizes for the left and right hands because “it’s easier to knit circular designs.”

A difference in language may catch Skeers up occasionally. He said he will remember that jumpers are called sweaters here because that term is something used in Australia. But beanies are called toques in Canada, due to the French influence.

“I may slip up with that word,” he said. “We have whole beanie festivals here.”

Part of his reason for coming to Canada is to do research on Cowichan Sweaters. Skeers will visit the Royal BC Museum in Victoria and the Museum of Anthropology at University of BC.

“I’ll attempt to find a way to incorporate Coast Salish symbols in pieces,” he said.

To see more of Skeers’ work, readers can go to pinterest.com/judeskeers.