Kendall Ross, aka “I’d Knit That”, is an Oklahoma City based fiber artist. She is best known for hand-knitting colorful, wearable art pieces. She uses intricate hand-knitting colorwork methods like intarsia and fair isle to illustrate images and incorporate her original texts into the fabric of her work. Each stitch on every sweater, vest, mural, and textile is painstakingly planned and knit over countless hours using two needles and wool.Kendall gravitated toward fiber art throughout her childhood, learning to crochet from her maternal grandmother. The close relationships she built with women in her family through knitting and crochet inspired her interest in women’s history. Kendall earned a BA in American history from Pepperdine University where she researched racial divides between Black and white women’s knitting movements in World War I. Her background as a historian inspires the content and the purpose behind her art. In her day-to-day practice, the action of hand-knitting is how Kendall processes her emotions, experiences, and memories. She is inspired by the exercise of using a historically woman- dominated skill to communicate her personal narrative of being a modern young woman. Kendall is drawn to telling unapologetically intimate, complicated stories of feminine, overlooked moments in her life, putting private emotions on display for people to wear on their chest in their public lives. Kendall aims to redefine the perception of both fiber art and hand-knitting in fine art spaces, challenging others’ perception of what is and isn’t art, and who gets to decide.

THE PROJECT: Girly Things
Girly Things is an exploration of the ongoing debate between art and craft, delving into gender dynamics and power structures that influence narratives, language, and opportunities. In this project, Kendall Ross will hand-knit eight new wearable art pieces, including sweaters, cardigans, vests, and a textile wall hanging. Each piece, priced between $500-$2000, challenges perceptions of femininity and vulnerability often associated with craft. The project addresses biases against female-dominated fields and aims to provoke uncomfortable questions about art, gender, and validation. Ross's work at Momentum 2024 seeks to spark reflection on biases in defining art and provide encouragement to undervalued fiber artists.