Common Threads

A guide to creating community-based art installations using green waste, invasive species and natural materials

...a gem of a book, innovative in the subjects it covers, inspiring in the philosophies it embraces, full of down-to-earth practical "how-to" advice, and a joy to read .---Nancy J. Turner, Distinguished Professor and Hakai Professor of Ethnoecology, University of Victoria and author, Ancient Pathways, Ancestral Knowledge

An exciting marriage of collaborative art and sustainable practices, this one-of-a-kind guide will resonate with educators, community activists, and engaged citizens alike. Brava! ---Tim Grant, co-editor, Green Teacher magazine

Common Threads is a guide to engaging communities in communal handwork for the greater good. Simple, easily taught, creative techniques applied with shared purpose become the modern-day equivalent of a barn raising or a quilting bee. Author and artist Sharon Kallis provides a wealth of ideas and strategies for:

• Crafting collaborative works of art or environmental remediation
• Utilizing unwanted natural materials, with an emphasis on green waste and invasive species
• Creating opportunities for individuals to connect with nature in a unique, meditative, yet community-oriented way.

Combining detailed, step-by-step instructions with tips for successful process and an inspirational overview of completed projects, Common Threads is a different kind of weaving book-one which will help artists and activists foster community, build empowerment and develop a do-it-together attitude while creating works of collaborative eco-art.

An extraordinary field guide, compendium and manual... for discerning citizen artists or creative types of any nature .---Jayce Salloum, media artist, recipient of the Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts, 2014

... Sharon Kallis makes a significant contribution to the growing body of writing on the value of the arts and cultural practices in sustainability. A wonderfully accessible book .---Beth Carruthers, author, Mapping the Terrain of Contemporary EcoArt Practice and Collaboration

Sharon Kallis is a Vancouver artist who specializes in working with unwanted natural materials. Involving community in connecting traditional hand techniques with invasive species and garden waste, she creates site-specific installations that become ecological interventions.