JOE HAMMEL -- JO HAMILTON TAKES
HER GRANDMOTHER'S LESSONS AND

CHANNELS THEM INTO HER ART.
HAMILTON TURNED AN ACTIVITY

THAT'S OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH AN
OLDER GENERATION INTO A FUN,

HIP, COLORF ACTIVITY BY
PUTTING A FACE TO A BALL OF

YARN.

THIS IS JO HAMILTON'S STUDIO.
IT'S PARADISE IN HERE.

IT'S FILLED WITH YARN.
YARN OF EVERY COLOR YOU CAN

THINK OF.

♪♪

SHE USES ALL THIS YARN TO
CROCHET STUFF.

THAT'S WHAT SHE DOES.
CROCHETS, ALL DAY LONG.

HOW DID YOU LEARN TO DO THAT?
MYELOGRAM TAUGHT ME WHEN

MY GRAM TAUGHT ME WHEN I WAS
ABOUT SIX YEARS OLD.

THE FIRST THING I LEARNED TO
CROCHET IS A GRANNY SQUARE WHICH

I WOULD SAY IS THE MOST COMN
SEEN PATTERN IN CROCHET.

IF YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE A GRANNY
SQUARE, THEN YOU CAN PRETTY MUCH

MAKE ANYTHING.
ONE DAY, JO GOT A BIG IDEA.

SHE TOOK SOME YARN AND HER HOOK
AND BEGAN TO CROCHET SOMETHING

THAT NO ONE HAD EVER TRIED
BEFORE.

SHE STARTED TO CROCHET A
LANDSCAPE OF PORTLAND.

♪♪

THIS BROWN STRIPE HERE
REPRESENTS BURNSIDE.

ALL THE BLUES ACROSS HERE
REPRESENTS THE RIVER.

THE BIG PINK, CITY HALL, THE
HAWTHORNE BRIDGE, BROADWAY, AS I

ENVISIONED IT.
STEEL BRIDGE.

THE CONVENTION CENTER.
ONE GRANNY SQUARE FROM MY GRAND,

WHICH I TURNED INTO A LITTLE
BUILDING.

AT THE TIME I WAS WORKING ON IT
WAS WHEN A LOT OF BUILDINGS WERE

GOING UP IN NORTHWEST PORTLAND
SO THERE WERE JUST CRANES

EVERYWHERE.
THE PIECES ARE MEANT TO BE MORE

OLD-SCHOOL.
ESTABLISHED PORTLAND, LOTS OF

TREES, VICTORIAN, KIND OF
WARMER, MORE NATURAL COLORS AS

OPPOSED TO THE KIND OF NEW BRASH
SIGHT OF PORTLAND AS IT'S BEING

BUILT.
I WAS WORKING IN A RESTAURANT,

AND MY C CORKERS, I HAD SHOWN
THEM WHAT I WAS DOING, THE START

OF THE CITYSCAPE WHEN IT WAS
STILL ONLY A COUPLE OF FEET, AND

THEY WERE GOOD-NATUREDLY MAKING
FUN OF ME FOR CROTCHETING

PORTLAND.
YOU'LL CROCHET ALL THE WAY TO --

THAT SORT OF THING.
AS A JOKE I SAID, SHUT UP OR

I'LL CROCHET YOU.
AND THAT'S JUST WHAT SHE DID.

BY NOW, JO KNEW SHE HAD CROSSED
THE LINE.

E WAS USING HER GRANDMA'S
TRADITIONAL CRAFT TO MAKE FINE

ART.
YOU KNOW, I BEGAN TO REALIZE

THAT REALLY I COULD PRETTY MUCH
CROCHET ANYTHING.

NO LIMITATIONS, AND I COULD GET
AMAZING LIKENESSES, NOT JUST

LIKENESSES OF PEOPLE BUT REALLY
CAPTURE PEOPLE'S SPIRIT IN YARN

IN A WAY THAT EVEN KIND OF STILL
AMAZES ME.

THIS IS THE AMISH TURK.K.
HE WAS A CHEF AT THE RESTAURANT

WHERE I WORKED.
THIS IS COREY HOPPER, ANOTHER

CHEF.
THIS IS MY FRIEND, BRIAN ADAMS

HARTFORD.

THIS IS SHREDDY, AKA ERIN, WHO
WAS DISHWASHER AT THE

RESTAURANT.
THIS IS JEVON WHO WAITED TABLES

WITH ME.
THIS IS A PORTRAIT OF GRANT WHO

WAS A WAITER.
HE WAS A REALLY GOOD SUBJECT.

I KIND OF REALLY LIKE THE
EXPRESSION ON THIS ONE.

LITTLE HALF SMILE.
AND HIS BLUE HAIR.

THIS IS LISA.
SHE WAS A OST AND SERVER.

SHE HAS A LOT OF HAIR.

THIS IS MY SELF-PORTRAIT.
IT ENDED UP BEING A REALLY

STRANGELY FAST PIECE THAT ONLY
TOOK A LITTLE OVER A WEEK.

WHENEVER I START A PORTRAIT, I
ALWAYS START WITH THE LEFT EYE.

I START RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF
THE LEFTYE WITH THE PUPIL

SURROUNDED BY THE IRIS.
AND THEN BUILD IT OUT FROM

THERE.
THE REASON IT WORKS REALLY WELL

WITH CROCHET IS BECAUSE I CAN
CHANGE DIRECTION ANYTIME I WANT.

AND IF YOU KNOW HOW TO CROCHET,
YOU CAN SEE WHAT I AM DOING BY

THE DIRECTION OF THE STITCHES.
SO ANYTIME YOU SEE A LINE IN

CROCHET, THAT IS THE DIRECTION
THAT I'M GOING IN.

I BASICALLY CIRCLE THE EYE, AND
THAT GIVES ME THE STRUCTURE OF

THE EYE SOCKET.
AND THEN BEL THAT, THE

CHEEKBONES, AND THEN USUALLY
I'LL DO THE OTHER EYE AND THEN

FIGURE OUT WHAT I NEED TO DO IN
THE MIDDLE TO JOIN THEM.

IT REALLY MAKES ME LAUGH
SOMETIMES WHEN I SEE THE GLINT

IN SOMEBODY'S EYE THAT I KNOW IS
THERE IN REAL LIFE.

OR SOMEBODY WHO IS SURLY, I'VE
GOT THEIR EXPRESSION.

I'M SURE A LOT OF CRAFTERS ARE
HORRIFIED BY WHAT I DO.

RULES ARE THERE TO BE BROKEN, AS
ANY ARTIST KNOWS.

I GET A LOT OF E-MAILS FROM
PEOPLE SAYING I'VE BEEN

CROTCHETING FOR 40 YEARS, AND
I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE

THIS, AND IT'S REALLY AMAZING
AND I'M REALLY INSPIRED, AND

THAT'S REALLY COOL THAT LITTLE
OLD LADIES ALL OVER THE WORLD

ARE TAKING THE TIME TO RIGHT TO
ME AND, YOU KNOW, THEY ARE

ENJOYING WHAT I DO.

TO SEE MORE, VISIT
JoHamiltonart.com.