{"id":7097,"date":"2015-06-17T19:04:28","date_gmt":"2015-06-18T02:04:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=7097"},"modified":"2015-06-17T15:07:43","modified_gmt":"2015-06-17T22:07:43","slug":"the-art-of-getting-people-back-to-nature-yarnbomber-stephen-duneier","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=7097","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Getting People Back to Nature | Yarnbomber Stephen Duneier"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Stephen<\/a>

Stephen Duneier with one of a series of yarn-covered boulders he created at Lizard’s Mouth. Photo by Scott London, ScottLondon.com.<\/p><\/div>\n

By Leslie Dinaberg<\/h5>\n

Artists often use their work to provoke discussion or emotion, but Yarnbomber Stephen Duneier\u2019s<\/a> colorful creations are site-specific installations designed to get people out to the middle of nowhere.<\/p>\n

In this case, \u201cthe middle of nowhere\u201d is Santa Barbara County\u2019s<\/a> plethora of hiking trails. Duneier\u2019s seven projects to date include creating an Alien Campsite on Davy Brown Trail<\/a>; a series of covered boulders at Lizard\u2019s Mouth<\/a>; a reflective starfish above the pools at Seven Falls<\/a>; a spider web at Sasquatch Cave in the playgrounds of Lizard\u2019s Mouth; an enormous boulder on Saddlerock Trail<\/a>; an ongoing Guinness Book of World Records<\/a> attempt to create the world\u2019s largest crocheted granny square; and creating his first project\u2014cloaking a 40-ft. tall eucalyptus tree on the Cold Spring Trail<\/a>\u2019s east fork with a gigantic knitted sweater\u2014which took place in 2012, just 82 days after he picked up knitting needles for the first time ever.<\/p>\n

All of Duneier\u2019s projects are done in a way that doesn\u2019t permanently disturb nature, with permission from the U.S. Forest Service<\/a>. \u201cThe forest service has actually been really supportive, now that I have a track record with them, and they know that I\u2019m not just some guy who wants to use the land for my own purposes,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The other consistent element in a Yarnbomber project is that the installations stay up for just nine days. \u201cThe first weekend is all about people just stumbling onto it, then there are five days during the week, when nobody goes hiking very much. The second weekend is all about word\u2013of\u2013mouth. It sort of builds\u2026but I don\u2019t really want crowds; I just want it to be on people\u2019s radar. And having it for nine days, you can\u2019t procrastinate. You\u2019re either going to go see it and make the effort today or you\u2019re just not going to see it,\u201d says Duneier.<\/p>\n

The projects, many of which are done in collaboration with artists from around the world, have opened up a world of new experiences for Duneier, whose day job is writing about and managing investments, as well as teaching Decision Analysis at UCSB\u2019s College of Engineering<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always been speaking on macroeconomics; talking at big conferences\u2026but now I\u2019ve started talking about making dreams come true; this has been a little offshoot of the yarn bombs,\u201d he says. The audiences vary, but the idea is \u201chow do you have these grand visions and actually make them happen?\u201d<\/p>\n

His next \u201cgrand vision,\u201d launching sometime this summer, incorporates metalwork and gemstones. As to where and when it pops up, the website yarnbomber.com<\/a> is the best place to stay tuned.<\/p>\n

Says Duneier, \u201cI\u2019m kind of a yes guy\u2026I really don\u2019t know where it all will lead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Originally published in the Summer 2015 issue of Santa Barbara Seasons Magazine<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

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