How yarn bombing grew into a worldwide movement | Magda Sayeg

翻译人员: Zhiting Chen 校对人员: meng di

I'm a textile artist

我是纺织艺术家

most widely known for starting the yarn bombing movement.

因开创了毛线轰炸活动 而为人熟知。

Yarn bombing is when you take knitted or crocheted material

毛线轰炸指的是 当你将针织或钩编所用的材料

out into the urban environment, graffiti-style --

以涂鸦艺术用于城市环境中

or, more specifically,

然而，准确的说

without permission and unsanctioned.

这种行为并未得到允许和批准。

But when I started this over 10 years ago,

但是，当我10年前开始这个活动的时候，

I didn't have a word for it,

我没有想到什么词来形容它，

I didn't have any ambitious notions about it,

我对它并没有任何野心，

I had no visions of grandeur.

也没有伟大的幻想。

All I wanted to see was something warm and fuzzy and human-like

我所想要看到的是一些温暖的， 毛绒的，更人性的

on the cold, steel, gray facade that I looked at everyday.

我每天都能在冰冷的，钢铁般灰白色的表面上看到。

So I wrapped the door handle.

所以我包裹住了门把手。

I call this the Alpha Piece.

我称之为Alpha作品。

Little did I know that this tiny piece would change the course of my life.

我不知道这样的小物件 会改变我的生活轨道。

So clearly the reaction was interesting.

很明显，出现了有趣的反应。

It intrigued me and I thought, "What else could I do?"

这促使我想， “我还能做些什么呢？”

Could I do something in the public domain that would get the same reaction?

我能在公共领域做哪些事情以达到同样的效果？

So I wrapped the stop sign pole near my house.

所以我包裹了 我家附近停车指示牌的杆子。

The reaction was wild.

反应很热烈。

People would park their cars

人们会停下车

and get out of their cars and stare at it,

走出来，盯着它看，

and scratch their heads and stare at it,

挠着他们的头，盯着它看，

and take pictures of it and take pictures next to it,

拍下它并且和它合照，

and all of that was really exciting to me

这些都让我感到惊喜

and I wanted to do every stop sign pole in the neighborhood.

于是我想要把附近每个停车牌的杆子 都包裹起来。

And the more that I did, the stronger the reaction.

我包裹的越多， 人们的反应就越强烈。

So at this point I'm smitten.

因此在这时刻我着迷了。

I'm hooked.

我乐在其中。

This was all seductive.

这一切太具有吸引力。

I found my new passion

我找到了我新的热情

and the urban environment was my playground.

城市是我的游乐园。

So this is some of my early work.

这些是我的早期作品。

I was very curious about this idea of enhancing the ordinary,

我对这个的主意十分感兴趣：美化平凡

the mundane, even the ugly,

世俗，甚至是丑陋的事物，

and not taking away its identity or its functionality

在不影响它的特征或是功能的情况下

but just giving it a well-tailored suit out of knitting.

给它裁剪一个优良的针织外套。

And this was fun for me.

这对我来说很有趣。

It was really fun to take inanimate objects

它实在有趣将无生命的物件

and have them come to life.

赋予它们生气。

So ...

于是...

I think we all see the humor in this,

我想我们都理解这个笑点，

but --

但是 --

(Laughter)

（笑声）

I was at a point where I wanted to take it seriously.

我当时正处在想要严肃对待它的时期。

I wanted to analyze it.

我想要分析它。

I wanted to know why I was letting this take over my life,

我想要知道我为什么 会让它主宰我的生活，

why I was passionate about it,

为什么我会乐在其中，

why were other people reacting so strongly to it.

为什么人们会对此产生 如此强烈的回应。

And I realized something.

我意识到了。

We all live in this fast-paced, digital world,

我们都生活在这个 快节奏，数字化的世界，

but we still crave and desire something that's relatable.

但我们仍然渴望并且期待 疗伤治愈系的东西。

I think we've all become desensitized

我想住在过度发展的城市里

by our overdeveloped cities that we live in,

我们都已经变得麻木，

and billboards and advertisements,

那些布告板，广告牌，

and giant parking lots,

巨型停车场，

and we don't even complain about that stuff anymore.

我们甚至不再抱怨这些东西。

So when you stumble upon

当你偶遇一个

a stop sign pole that's wrapped in knitting

杆子被针织物包裹的停车牌杆时

and it seems so out of place

它看起来这么不协调

and then gradually -- weirdly --

然后渐渐地-- 奇怪的--

you find a connection to it,

你发现自己和它产生了某种连结，

that is the moment.

就是那个时刻。

That is the moment I love

那是我爱的时刻

and that is the moment I love to share with others.

那时我想要与他人分享的时刻。

So at this point, my curiosity grew.

因此在这时，我更加好奇。

It went from the fire hydrants and the stop sign poles

从消防栓和停车牌杆

to what else can I do with this material.

到别的我能用针织改造的物件。

Can I do something big and large-scale and insurmountable?

我能做大型的，难以超越的物件吗？

So that's when the bus happened.

于是这个大巴就这样出现了。

This was a real game changer for me.

这对我来说是一个真正的游戏规则改变者。

I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for this one.

我永远都在心中为这件作品 留有柔软的位置。

At this point, people were recognizing my work

那时起，人们开始认识到我的作品

but there wasn't much out there

但是这样的作品并不多

that was wrapped in knitting that was large-scale,

巨型的，被针织物包裹的作品，

and this definitely was the first city bus to be wrapped in knitting.

这就是第一个被织针物品包裹起来的城市里大巴车。

So at this point, I'm experiencing,

那时，我开始试验，

or I'm witnessing something interesting.

我开始见证一些有趣的事。

I may have started yarn bombing but I certainly don't own it anymore.

我也许是那个开启毛线轰炸活动的人 但很明显那活动已不属于我。

It had reached global status.

毛线轰炸成为了全球化的活动。

People from all over the world were doing this.

全世界的人们 都在做这样的活动。

And I know this because I would travel to certain parts of the world

我知道这个是因为 我去了世界一些地方旅行

that I'd never been to,

我以前从没去过那里，

and I'd stumble upon a stop sign pole and I knew I didn't wrap it.

我会偶遇一个停车牌的杆子 我知道不是我把它包裹起来的。

So as I pursued my own goals with my art --

因此当我开始追求自己的艺术目标--

this is a lot of my recent work --

这些是一些我最近的作品--

so was yarn bombing.

当然是毛线轰炸。

Yarn bombing was also growing.

毛线轰炸仍在增长。

And that experience showed me the hidden power of this craft

这样的经验展示了 工艺作品的潜在能量

and showed me

并告诉我

that there was this common language I had with the rest of the world.

我和世界其他地区有着 这样的通用语言。

It was through this granny hobby --

通过这个老年女性的兴趣活动--

this unassuming hobby --

这个不装腔作势谦逊活动--

that I found commonality with people

我找到了和那些 我从未想过可能有关系的人群

that I never thought I'd have a connection with.

之间的连结。

So as I tell my story today,

今天我讲了我的故事，

I'd also like to convey to you

我也想传达给你们一个信息

that hidden power can be found in the most unassuming places,

潜在的力量往往出现在 最谦逊平凡的地方

and we all possess skills that are just waiting to be discovered.

我们都拥有这些本领等待着被发掘。

If you think about our hands, these tools that are connected to us,

如果你思考我们的双手， 这双与我们连接在一起的工具，

and what they're capable of doing --

他们能做什么--

building houses and furniture,

建造房屋和制造家具，

and painting giant murals --

绘制巨型的壁画--

and most of the time we hold a controller or a cell phone.

在绝大部分时间里 我们握着遥控器或是手机。

And I'm totally guilty of this as well.

我同样对此感到非常愧疚。

But if you think about it,

但是如果你们想，

what would happen if you put those things down?

当你放下这些东西的时候 会发生什么？

What would you make? What would you create with your own hands?

你会制作些什么？ 你会用你的双手创造些什么？

A lot of people think that I am a master knitter

很多人认为 我是技艺精湛的编织大师

but I actually couldn't knit a sweater to save my life.

事实上，我甚至无法 为自己织一件毛衣来御寒。

But I did something interesting with knitting

但我用针织 做了一些有趣的事情

that had never been done before.

那些我之前从未做过的事情。

I also wasn't "supposed to be" an artist

我也不是“想要”要成为艺术家的人

in the sense that I wasn't formally trained to do this --

在这个意义上我从未接受过正式的艺术类训练--

I'm a math major actually.

事实上，我的专业是数学。

So I didn't think this was in the cards for me,

我从未想过这是我手中的牌，

but I also know that I didn't stumble upon this.

但我也知道我并非偶然发现它。

And when this happened to me, I held on tight,

当机会出现的时候 我将它紧紧握住，

I fought for it and I'm proud to say that I am a working artist today.

我为此努力并且我很骄傲地说 今天我是艺术家。

So as we ponder the future,

当我们思考未来，

know that your future might not be so seamless.

知道你的未来或许不是一帆风顺的。

And one day, you might be as bored as I was

某一天，你也许会 和我一样感到疲倦

and knit a door handle to change your world forever.

织一个门把手套 就此改变你们的世界

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（鼓掌）