Christien Meindertsma

Dutch artist Christien Meindertsma explores the patterns of the traditional Irish fisherman's sweater in her oversized knitted rugs. Meindertsma has been committed to reviving the artist's relationship to processes lost with industrialization, unearthing "the life and story behind the products that we surround ourselves with," she says. In pursuit of her art, she has spun wool from heirloom sheep in the countryside and harvested flax with Dutch designer Thomas Eyck.

Inspired by the Aran sweater, Meindertsma takes the chunky knit trend to a whole other level in her Aran Rug  project. She uses custom-made wide-gauge knitting needles and thickly spun wool, thick as a rope, to create rugs that play with scale and texture.