Image via Google

Everything old is new again. That is the nature of art, is it not? Creative Energy is always growing, stretching and morphing with the times, like the culture within which it is woven.

Artists are here to needle us common folk, to take us aback, to make us literally and figuratively, look again. Artists help counteract our rut, the mundane part of our lives that can become robotic. With insightful commentary on sociopolitical seriousness, under cover of fun and whimsy, and when warranted, down right rancor and biting sarcasm, they are here to protect us and liberate us from banality.

It sounds grandiose, but the simpler the better sometimes. All that is needed is to catch the masses off guard provoking wonder, reflection, emotion, laughter, reminiscence. We may not necessarily agree or appreciate everything that “they dare put out there” for us all to see. Though sometimes troubled, undervalued and misunderstood, those who participate in their artistry are brave in their vulnerability, some bolstered by their own ego and sometimes not, nevertheless making them worthy of society’s honor. I think their contributions enrich all of our daily lives, externally and internally and I couldn’t do without them. I say, “May God Bless the Urbane Artistes!”

Take the relatively new phenomenon of yarn bombing, for instance. It started in Europe when individuals with common proclivities began fussing about in a very peculiar way — tagging the town with their giggle-provoking-graffiti-softwear! Most would find what they do a very uplifting addition to city-life. Uh…but not everyone. Like all other types of graffiti, this too is considered illegal, even though it is removable and usable. Lol. Imagine that? Must make it an even more enticing challenge to such ‘rebels’ as these urban knitters. (I certainly appreciate your exuberance, just please, don’t hurt yourselves trying to ascend and cover new heights!)

Yarn bombing has gone global as you’ll see in this Today Show video-clip.

Watch out they’re armed, and NO thing is safe! 🙂 Thank Goodness. We need some old-fashioned, refashioned, jocularity…

Yarn Bomb by Urban Knitters. Railroad Square, Santa Rosa, CA. November 7, 2010. (Photo by Maggie Begley).

(And, those urban knitters even came to my town and caught ME by surprise! Well not totally, because I had already made this post in July 2010 so I was aware of them. They came out of the woodwork in Santa Rosa in November 2010. I was just going about my business, and lo and behold, I was so delighted to see the world, my town, come to me! All warm and cozy…I just had to update this post in celebration thereof. I have also updated the links above, which came along in 2011 and 2012. So I was a tiny bit ahead of the curve) 🙂