Sunbrella Cordage
In July 2025, I journeyed to the edge of the world as a participant in the Arctic Circle Residency—an expedition that brings together international artists, scientists, architects, and educators to explore the Svalbard Archipelago and the Arctic Ocean aboard a three-masted schooner.
For two weeks, our floating community engaged in fieldwork, collaboration, and reflection on climate, culture, and creativity in one of the planet’s most fragile and awe-inspiring landscapes.
For me, the residency was about returning to the roots of knotting. Most knots originate from maritime culture, and living aboard a tall ship offered the rare chance to immerse myself in that history at its source. It was the fulfillment of a long-held dream—working with rope on a proper sailing vessel in Arctic waters.
The experience was nothing short of life-changing. We sailed north of the 80th parallel, moored our ship to the ice floe, and stepped out onto a frozen expanse with no land between us and the North Pole. Surrounded by icebergs and infinite sky, I knotted a net on the sea ice itself. The ice cracked beneath us, a polar bear appeared on the horizon, and I felt both the fragility and the vastness of this environment.
The Arctic Circle Residency expanded my practice in ways I am still processing—reminding me that rope, like the sea, is both ancient and alive, always carrying with it the story of human navigation, survival, and wonder.
