Infinity Knot is a gently staged piece in which people learn how to tie an infinity knot whilst thinking about someone or something they're infinitely connected to. This drop-in activity was originally made for South Bank's PRAGMA weekend as part of their summer season of LOVE in 2014.
In November 2014 the piece was also presented as part of Dialogue Festival - Talking/Making/Taking Park: a festival of theatre and discussion at Oval House (Curated by Maddy Costa and Jake Orr).
In 2024 Sheila revisited the work as part of Charlotte Spencer’s We Are All Memory Bodies Exhibition (re-thinking some of the colours / instructions / context around the work), and also shared it at Appetite’s Big Feast in Stoke where it was installed in AirSpace Gallery for the weekend.
What happens in the work?
The activity is very informal. Participants take a seat at the table and are instructed to think about who or what they are tying their knot for. They then either follow a demonstration video or are shown how to tie the knot in person by Sheila. The knot is then packaged in a kind of presentation bag and the person who has tied the knot is able to take it away and keep it or pass it on as a gift. It's up to them!
Those tying a knot are also invited to record their dedication in a book for others to see.
Photography by Zoe Manders (for Charlotte Spencer Projects) & Jenny Harper for Appetite.
“Knot - a complex symbol embracing several important meanings all of which
are related to the central idea of a tightly closed link.”