Gonnette Smits, a Studio Muurbloem designer, carried out research into various types of ceramic wall finish at in the European Ceramic Work Centre (EKCW, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands). Ceramic wall finishes are generally known for providing a hard sealed surface: what Smits was looking for was ways of using ceramics to give a wall tactile value. She therefore produced twelve units of knitted material on the theme ‘Knitted walls’. These pieces were prototypes, serving as a physical translation of an idea, but were capable of being manufactured to suit a particular program of requirements. In the designer’s own words: “ it seemed to me that it would create a fascinatingly poetic effect if the outer skin of a building looked as if it
were knitted. It should be possible to play tricks with coloured threads and different stitches, for example to suggest a Norwegian sweater, so that the architecture could suggest a woollen sweater pulled on to protect the inside of the building”.