Sam Barsky

Sam Barsky is an American artist and internet celebrity. He is known for knitting sweaters of iconic landmarks, then taking selfies in front of those landmarks while wearing them. He also knits sweaters of Jewish and other holidays.

His sweaters are knitted without a pattern freehanding them as he goes along.[1] His sweaters have been recognized as art, having been displayed in numerous galleries[2] and at the American Visionary Arts Museum.[3]

Background

Barsky started knitting in 1999 after he dropped out of nursing school due to health issues, and first tried to teach himself how to knit from a book he borrowed from the library. Soon after, he met the owners of a local yarn shop, who taught him.[4][5]

His first sweaters included a waterfall, covered bridge, lake, and castle. He made a Twin Towers sweater before September 11th.[6]

He rose to international fame in 2017 when an article about his sweaters was published on Imgur.[3] Originally he did not take selfies in front of landmarks, but began to do so unconsciously and later made it an art form.[7] He has reportedly knitted 119 sweaters for his travels.[8] Though he receives many requests, Barsky does not sell his sweaters because he says it is impossible to be a "human sweater mill.".[9] However, he does sell t-shirts with prints of his designs on his website.

Images depicted on Barsky's sweaters

Landmarks

Some of the landmarks Barsky has featured are:

Holidays

Other

Barsky has also knitted items other than sweaters, including a framed picture of the Beth Am sanctuary.[12]

Personal life

Barsky was raised Orthodox, and practices today as a Conservative Jew and is a kohein (Jewish priest).[14] He is married to his wife Deborah.[1]

He suffers from lupus and a neurological disorder, but he says he does not let it stand in the way of his knitting.[7][15][11][2]

References
  1. "The Man Who Made Those Viral Sweaters Has One For Every Jewish Holiday".
  2. "Sam's loom with a view".
  3. "The Baltimore knitter who unraveled the internet".
  4. "The man who blends into the background". bbc.com. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  5. "Gone Viral? No Sweat, Just Sweaters". jewishtimes.com. January 20, 2017. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
  6. https://www.fredericknewspost.com/news/arts_and_entertainment/sam-barsky-a-sweater-for-every-occasion/article_b217956b-6c33-5161-9a5b-93e6ecd2cf3a.html
  7. "The Baltimore knitter who unraveled the internet".
  8. "This Man Who Knits Sweaters to Match Landmarks Is the Hero the Internet Needed". Time.com. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
  9. "Sweater Selfies: Man Knits His Way Around The World".
  10. "Pikesville knitter goes viral for destination-themed sweaters". The Baltimore Sun. January 11, 2017.
  11. http://www.theyarnloop.com/article/artistic-knitting-–-sam-barsky-and-his-postcard-sweaters
  12. Haaretz (January 9, 2017). "Baltimore Man's Sweaters Are Better Than Postcards" – via Haaretz.
  13. Barsky, Sam (2019-10-02). "My sweater of London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Made for my trip there this past summer. #sambarsky". Instagram. Retrieved 2019-10-02.
  14. "The Baltimore knitter who unraveled the internet". Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  15. Jones, Stephen (March 27, 2017). "Ex-student's world tour stood in front of landmarks wearing jumpers he's knitted". Retrieved April 4, 2017.
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