Undersea yarn

Starting with just a few pieces of yarn, Michelle Schwengel-Regala has accomplished the impossible, getting this writer to feel somewhat enthusiastic about math, an otherwise sore subject best left in the closet of high school and college memories.

What’s more, she’s gotten knitters and crocheters all around the world sending her their work to add to her project, a colorful, nubby Hawaiian reef filled with aquatic life reproduced in all manner of yarn.

She’s set lofty goals for her project, officially titled "Hawai‘i Prototype Reef, a Satellite Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef," but for ease of explaining what it’s all about, she simply refers to it as "Hook the Reef."

The local satellite exhibition of a global phenomenon goes on view at the ARTS at Marks Garage June 3. Schwengel-Regala is collecting pieces representing local corals, aquatic flora and sea creatures through Monday. All pieces will be available for sale.

For contributors who need a quick crochet lesson, the YarnStory shop is offering crochet workshops Saturday, including sessions led by Schwengel-Regala on hyperbolic crochet and knitting.

"Community organizing is not something I thought I would be doing, but this has already inspired a lot of people," she said.

The project took root when Schwengel-Regala was working as a science illustrator for the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles. In 2005, she became intrigued by the work of the Institute for Figuring, an organization created by science writer Margaret Wertheim and her twin sister, Christine, with the aim of enhancing the public’s knowledge of figures and figuring techniques.

For Schwengel-Regala, a math and science geek, subjects like the physics of snowflakes and the mathematics of paper folding were fascinating. She was particularly captivated by the hyperbolic geometry of sea slugs.

Seeing the numbers involved in mapping these designs mathematically gives me a headache, but simply put, hyperbolic planes abound in nature. They’re reflected in the frilly edges of the marine slugs, a leaf of lettuce and certain coral formations. The plane starts as a flat surface area that expands as it extends outward, creating a curvaceous, frilly, crenallated edge. The expanded surface area has practical application, allowing animals to breathe or propel themselves and plant life to transpire, but to the human eye, it’s simply beautiful to look at — nature’s works of art.

Yet, mathematicians were confounded by the problem of rendering hyperbolic planes in three dimensions. Although hyperbolic geometry was discovered in the 19th century, it took a woman, Daina Taimina, a mathematician at Cornell University, to realize in 1997 that the formula could be easily demonstrated through the simple craft of crochet.

The Wertheims, who hail from Queensland, Australia, saw in the crocheted forms the shapes of plant life and corals native to the Great Barrier Reef. At the same time, they were concerned about global warming’s effect on coral and launched their Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project to raise dual awareness of mathematics and environmental and conservation issues.

Artists were also addressing environmental issues, and in 2007 the Wertheims’ reef project was included in a global warming-themed exhibition at the Andy Warhol Museum. This was followed by a 3,000-square-foot exhibition at the Chicago Cultural Center.

Others took note and last fall, 800 people contributed to the Smithsonian community reef, which was displayed with the Wertheims’ creation at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. The exhibit closed last month.

Satellite reefs have popped up around the world, from places as diverse as Capetown, Africa, to Latvia and the Indiana State Women’s Prison.

BY THIS TIME Schwengel-Regala had moved to Hawaii, one of the most logical places on Earth for a reef exhibit. Although she said she wasn’t much of a crocheter, basic coral forms can be made with only a foundation chain and single crochet stitches. "A large part of my decision to organize the Hawaii reef exhibit was based on my experience with the Papahanau­mokuakea Marine National Monument," she said.

The monument brings community leaders to Midway Atoll for a weeklong workshop to increase knowledge of island and wildlife conservation, among other subjects. Selected as an alternate for the program last year, Schwengel-Regala got a taste of what it entailed via a motivational three-day orientation session on Oahu.

Although the program wasn’t funded this year, she said she’s continuing her objective to expand the reef project, aiming for a major local museum exhibition, with outreach to schoolchildren and adults who might be able to pick up such tips as establishing home or kitchen gardens, planting native or drought-resistant plants in yards, and supporting legislation that protects natural habitats and agricultural land.

Schwengel-Regala considered herself an average consumer before, but said, "I see myself changing as I’ve worked on this. I’m more mindful of the plastic problem and how I use plastic bags, how I choose to use or not use them, about the things I choose to have shipped to the island versus things I can shop for locally."

For her own crochet pieces, she’s unraveled sweaters from thrift stores and cut plastic bags into strips to use as yarn. She doesn’t require others to use repurposed materials, "but a lot of people are doing that," she said.

For those who wish to contribute to the exhibit, Schwengel-Regala said it’s not as important to be precise and pretty as it is to learn about Hawaii’s ocean flora and fauna.

"My stipulation is that it has to be inspired by species from the Hawaiian archipelago. They have to tell me what it is because I want people to be aware of what we have here."

One of her favorite pieces is a regal slipper lobster (Arctides regalis), designed by Julie Baxter.

"The way she so realistically interpreted the animal’s form and movement with yarn and pipe cleaners is what captivates me so much, said Schwengel-Regala, who studied entomology and taxonomy before one of her professors discovered her illustration abilities through her class notes, changing her career direction.

She’s happiest now seeing others create.

"I see how other people are getting so much joy and fun with what they’re making. A lot of them had been beholden to patterns in the past, and this challenges them to be open to things they can create by themselves."