Yarn Bombing

Hello All,

I am currently working on my second last essay, ever! But I have been reading all day and I need to have a break so I thought I would talk a little about yarn bombing.

ThankYouTree CC BY-SA 3.0

Shrewdcat - Own work

I cannot accurately remember when I first found out about yarn bombing but I have always found it very attractive. Essentially yarn bombing is the act of installing an artwork made of yarn in a public space. It is sort of like graffiti but it is generally considered attractive and it is easy to remove and therefore not considered damaging to public properly. The most common forms that I know of are crochet and knitting yarn bombs.
Here are some examples of what I am talking about:

Apparently an entire town got together and "yarn bombed" their public spaces. You can see pictures here.

And here is a blog by someone who does yarn bombing.

Now here is where I have reached a dilemma. In South Africa, and Cape Town specifically there is a lot of poverty. At night when we are driving places I often pass people who have no houses. I specifically do not say home because I feel that a home is a very personal thing and anything can be a home. But there are many people here who do not have adequate shelter. I see them outside a closed shop sheltering from the rain and wind. There are some terrible news reports, during the cold winter weeks, of people who have died due to the exposure to the cold. Living in a city like this I just feel too bad to do yarn bombing. Although I would likely get no credit for my work and likely not be able to see people appreciating my work, I feel like my time and money would be better spent in crocheting clothes and blankets for the people on the street. We also have numerous orphanages where my donations would be appreciated as well.

I would like to make it clear that I am in no way trying to criticize those people who do participate in yarn bombing, I think that it is a really beautiful art form. But I just feel that personally I would feel happier with myself if I donated my efforts elsewhere.
   
Anyway, I should be getting back to work now.
Have a good day and keep drinking tea ;)
Diella