Friday Focus: Gabriele Meyer

Hello, friends! Friday has arrived once again and Friday Focus is back in full swing. Today's feature shines a light on a very special crocheter. Gabriele Meyer is a senior lecturer of Mathematics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison...and she's also a crochet artist! Remember when I briefly mentioned hyperbolic crochet? Gabriele uses the hyperbolic qualities of crochet to create stunning works of fine art. Let's learn more about her!

Who taught you to crochet? How long have you been doing it?
I learned it at age 7 in elementary school. First project: a potholder.

What inspired you to create crochet art?
My Ph.D. advisor's (David Henderson) wife Daina Taimina crochets hyperbolic surfaces, which I saw on a visit to Ithaca, NY. My contribution to the area was to discover that by crocheting around shaped line, you can make the surface curve in three dimensional space.

Crochet Favorites
Red Heart, it's cheap and there are many colors. I like heavy silver metal crochet hooks. They don't break with heavy use. I crochet quite firmly. 

What are you working on right now? 
I crochet around a spiraling wire, which I took out of a children's crawl tube. It's an experiment. Other than that, I work on lino prints of shells. Things rotate with me. I also paint gouaches. 

A few finished objects...
The large white lamp shade started out as a flat disk, then I started the hyperbolic crochet around the perimeter. Attaching it to the ceiling at about 10-15 cm below low energy bulbs has worked well for me. The lamp doesn't get hot. I have had it like that now since January. 

The wavy red algae is new. I made it over the summer. I just like it to be big, wavy and red! Ideally it should float horizontally in the air.

The blue triangle algae, really is a triangle, one side in a darker shade of blue, the other one lighter.

Truly incredible. My favorite is the blue piece, as it reminds me of swirling ocean waves. How delightful that we can capture the beauty of math and nature in crochet! You can see more of Gabriele Meyer's work here. Very inspiring! Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful crochet with us today, Gabriele!