Knitting Practice in Korea: A Geography of Everyday Experiences

The recent resurgence of knitting is an ambiguous social phenomenon because it has pre-industrial connotations in late modern society. Knitting is inherently an ambiguous practice which blurs the boundary between production and consumption, the material and the mental and subject and object. This paper explores Korean knitting practice from the angle of social practice. An examination of knitting practice in Korea revealed that the inherent heterogeneity is intricately intertwined with the complex landscape of knitting practice, which is dispersed in a range of different forms of subgroups. Also, the multifaceted aspect of these subgroups which combines consumption, production, education and socialization, refers to the complicated and contrasting aspects of contemporary consumption and consumers. This paper particularly pays attention to the role of practical understanding as a form of skill, know-how and knowledge in the formulation and transformation of knitting practice. It also examines the emotional landscape of knitting practice, which is constructed and mediated in close interconnection with the material dimensions of the practice.