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A beautiful large-scale crochet mural now adorns the fences of Columbus Park, located by Manhattan's Mulberry and Baxter Streets in Chinatown.
Made of more than 1,000 leaves, almost 1,000 crochet squares and 1,5000 flowers that were sewn together by neighborhood volunteers, "Stand-Speak-Shape" is a 4-foot-high by 25-foot-wide work of art by the Chinatown Yarn Circle Project in collaboration with the Creative Sanctum, Think Chinatown and artist Naomi Lawrence. It will be on display until October 8, 2022.
On Instagram, Lawrence discussed the meaning behind the project, which seeks to represent "an intergenerational community mobilizing to stand together, speak up for justice and shape society through civic action and crochet." The flowers themselves, explains the artist, "are in tribute to AAPI community builders, embodying collaboration, triumph over struggle and inspiring future generations."
Among the many flowers used to create the work are the Arabian Jasmine (representing the Philippines), Plum Blossoms (Taiwan), Hibiscus (Malaysia) and Chrysanthemum (Japan).
Take a look at the making of the massive crochet here:
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And here is a closer look at the flowers:
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This is actually the Chinatown Yarn Circle's inaugural project, a meaningful work that fits right into the ethos and character of the neighborhood—also adding to New York's overall street art scene (we are, don't forget, considered the street art capital of America!).