The Knit Virus (2008)

The hepatitis C virus is externalized in this wearable garment knit into a pattern of the virus’s protein structure.

Worn during 'Tea Party to Befriend a Virus,' the Knit Virus is an alluring solicitation in which is embedded a social message. The hepatitis C virus becomes skin in the Knit Virus by taking the geodesic pattern of the protein structure of the viral capsid and transforming it into a wearable garment. The pleasurable and tactile craft of the garment becomes an external signifier of the destructive patterning of the virus beneath the skin, while simultaneously suggesting a subversively symbiotic relationship to disease.

Hand knit silk & wool. Size small.

Kimberly Hamlin, master knitter; Funding provided by the MIT Council for the Arts