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Artist Crochets Retro Meals and Appliances Inspired by His Childhood

By Emma Taggart on August 22, 2019

Crochet isn’t just for your grandmother’s blankets and tea cozies anymore—many contemporary fiber artists are modernizing the time-honored craft to create incredible works of art. One of those artists is Australia-based Trevor Smith. He uses colorful woolen yarns to craft charming textile replicas of meals and household appliances.

From a crocheted baked ham with pineapple slices to a woolen cheese platter with crackers, grapes, and olives, Smith’s Cocktail Hour series evokes a retro dinner party scene with a textile twist. Each piece features a foam, rubber, or polystyrene base which the artist then covers with pure wool. He clearly puts a lot of thought into his work and pays great attention to detail with each textile sculpture—the cheese platter even has a crocheted knife! “These works have been influenced by childhood, family life, and by images from childhood—what was on TV or in magazines,” he reveals. “The food sculptures are a throwback to the advertisements in women’s magazines and the brightly colored images in old cookbooks.”

Not only is Smith’s subject choice influenced by his childhood, but so is his choice of medium. He first learned how to crochet from his mother and would often help her make dolls’ clothes and blankets for family and friends. He recalls, “My mother was a talented craftswoman and I was always shadowing her, wanting to be doing what she was doing.”

Scroll down to see some of Smith’s retro crochet sculptures and check out more of his work on Facebook. His work is also available to purchase through Michael Reid gallery.