14. Motto / Mascot

14. Motto / Mascot

I’m not sure I have a motto – this is something I should definitely define for The KNITSONIK School. I have many core values, but it’s only as I’m writing this that I realise I could turn them into a motto…

…However, I do have mascots by which I mean affirmative symbols that embody core values and that, in and of themselves, are extremely encouraging and inspiring.

When I was doing my undergraduate degree, I was very stretched at the last push, coping poorly with pain levels of psoriatic arthritis and managing on an unsustainable cocktail of opioids, steroids and coffee. I’d flown to the US with the proceeds from art commissions for private clients + interviewed an artist whose work I admire deeply – Christine Hill – about her magnificent Volksboutique project. I came home with masses of material, jet lagged and sore. I struggled to complete my thesis on time and was so overtired when I handed it in that I was convinced it was crap. In the fragile days that followed, I bought an elephant stamp with SUPER written on it, to acknowledge that even if my thesis was a failure, I had made a valiant effort.

Around that time I was trying to help extreme morning pain with happy animal plushies. I felt that if I woke up to see their sweet faces, my first thoughts of the day might be more positive. In this way Monkl (pronounced munkle) came into my life as a vital mascot.

My staunch advocate and buddy, he is loyal, funny, naughty. He embodies mischief, an epic sense of play and creativity, and a silent along-side-ness that is a deep comfort.

He came on an early date with Mark, as I felt that our relationship had no future if Monkl was not accepted as part of the full Felix package. Here he is at Camber sands, in the early days of my relationship with Mark, during which I played songs badly on accordion and Monkl impersonated Yoda by putting peanut shells in his ears. As Mark says now, “rather than seeing these things as the obvious red flags that they are, I found them endearing”.

My undergraduate degree show featured a collection of sound pieces that were human stories created using the metaphor of animals. The monkey song you can hear in this little video montage of Monkl was created during an experimentatal recording session. The guitar was composed by Martin Cregg over which I had the impulse to vocalise a monkey – both silly, and full of pathos. When I saw Monkl in the gift shop on the Ireland-England ferry, I knew he was the monkey from my song. He has been my mascot ever since. Pictured in this video are a scattering of artworks, photos and nonsense involving Monkl.

Over time friends have contributed in different ways to the ongoing myth and legend and joy of MONKL.
Deborah Gray used the KNITSONIK System to make him a banana-inspired sweater; my friend Caro made me a rubber stamp that perfectly captures his amazing personality; and many friends have contributed to his little – and, I have to say, extremely rarely-used – bullet journaling kit.

Monkl is not such a one for plans; he likes bouncing on the bed, things that are about monkeys or bananas, and me.
He reminds me to be courageous, to keep play at the centre of everything I do and, above all, to maintain a sense of humour and be kind.

I love Monkl.

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