Meet the woman who is turning instant noodles into art

Her noodlework - knitting with noodles - is a comment on our obsession with instant gratification.

Artist Cynthia Delaney Suwito shows off her knitted noodlework

Artist Cynthia Delaney Suwito shows off her knitted noodlework. Source: Screenshot BBC

has always appreciated instant noodles as a quick and tasty meal. Now she's turning them into a performance art piece.

The Singapore-based, Indonesian fine arts graduate is knitting noodles at a Singapore gallery, creating a long edible scarf as part of the exhibition of emerging artists.

The 23-year-old spends three to four hours every day boiling, cooling and then knitting the noodle threads, adding 20-30cm to the length of the piece daily.
"I've been knitting instant noodles since late 2014," Suwito tells .

"I was doing it because I wanted to contrast the idea of time - how I'm doing something very slow to something 'instant' like instant noodles. And by using this, I'm actually making the process of knitting slower than it should be. The purpose of it is actually to [make] people slow down and take a break in this 'instant' world."
Cynthia Delaney Suwito's Knitting Noodles
Cynthia Delaney Suwito's Knitting Noodles Source: Cynthia Delaney Suwito
It took Suwito a few months to learn to knit the noodles, which she finds calming - unless she sees a strand about to snap. 

She uses normal knitting needles, a small wooden box with holes to support one of the needles, a small hand-made comb, and a hairdryer to dry the noodles. She also has a preference when it comes to the brands she uses, as some are thicker and easier to use.
Fortunately, her work hasn't put her off eating instant noodles: "Currently my favourite is the Korean Nongshim spicy mushroom," she says.

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2 min read
Published 10 January 2017 2:14pm
Updated 13 May 2019 11:18am
By Alyssa Braithwaite


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