When a friend of hers told Norwegian artist Kjersti Andvig about women who knitted next to the guillotine during the French Revolution, it inspired an ambitious and unique art project.
Published On 16 Jun 200916 Jun 2009
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The women known as "les tricteuses" would drop a stitch at the moment of every execution. This link between knitting and the death penalty spurred her to contact someone on death row.
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Kjersti first met Carlton A. Turner, who was awaiting execution in Texas, in 2006.
Upon seeing the conditions inmates lived in, Kjersti decided she wanted, in collaboration with Carlton, to recreate the cell he lived in for 9 years.
Carlton was in charge of choosing many of the symbols that adorned the art piece. Many of them related to gangs.
Kjersti says that the work had a certain "hope" to it while Carlton was alive.
