Craftivism
Craftivism is a form of activism, typically incorporating elements of anti-capitalism, environmentalism, solidarity, or third-wave feminism, that is centered on practices of craft - or what has traditionally been referred to as "domestic arts".
The term craftivism was coined in 2003 by writer Betsy Greer in order to join the separate spheres of craft and activism.
[3][4] Her favorite self-created definition of the term states, "craftivism is a way of looking at life where voicing opinions through creativity makes your voice stronger, your compassion deeper & your quest for justice more infinite"[5] Although the term craftivism is a recent addition to crafting lexicon, the use of craft as a subversive tactic can be found throughout history.
[7] In the novel A Tale of Two Cities, the character Madame Defarge, a worker for the French Revolution, secretly encodes the names of those soon to be executed in her knitting.
[9] As a result, women's significant and creative work in the private sphere—clothing the family, knitting blankets, weaving the loom—did not receive the same respect as male-dominated activity in the public realm.
In these craft circles or meet ups women would not only share patterns and skills but also engage in conversation about their lives in the private sphere.
Third-wave feminists are reclaiming knitting, sewing, and other crafting activities traditionally feminized and associated with the private sphere.
[12][better source needed] This critique of women's expression and craftivism as a ‘lesser’ art form has been contested within the discourse of feminism.
Craftivist, Betsy Greer, is quoted saying, "While I think that crafting has become something fairly elite and cliquish in some areas, at its heart, it is very much made for individuals who value both their time and their money".
At their core is the idea of bringing people together in a non-violent, "mild mannered yet stubborn front"[19] through their craft activities, no matter on the participant's skill levels.
[24] Due to this movement from use-value to exchange-value, there is less emphasis on the time and skill expended to create an object, and more importance on making it available to the masses as inexpensively as possible.
[27] Similarly, Cat Mazza's online software KnitPro[28] allows users to download images into detailed knitting patterns at no charge.
[30] In the MicroRevolt website, Cat Mazza introduced a web application that translates digital images into needlecrafts, such as crochet, knitting, and embroidery.
[30] Artist and Activist Kirsty Robertson feels that the subversive efforts of craftivists against capitalism are limited by their dependency on the internet and new communication.
Anti-war craftivists choose to make their statement by juxtaposing a colorful, soft, and fuzzy yarn with cold and dangerous weapons.
She writes on her website that, "Unsimilar to a war, knitting signals home, care, closeness and time for reflection...When [the tank] is covered in pink, it becomes completely unarmed and it loses its authority".
[31] Much like Jorgensen, Canadian artist Barb Hunt works to question the acceptance of military logic in society by creating knitted antipersonnel land mines out of wool.
[13] Similar to her campaign against Nike, Cat Mazza started an anti-war effort entitled "Stitch for Senate" on the fourth anniversary of the Iraq War.
Unlike the apolitical Operation Home Front efforts that knitted gear for soldiers, Mazza wanted "to start a dialogue about the war and to get politicians to keep the promises they made during the midterm elections".
[13] Sisters In Stitches, a group primarily composed of women of color, was established in the late 1990s to raise awareness for a number of causes using quilting.
"[35] The Craftivist Collective, founded by Sarah Corbett, is an inclusive group of people committed to using thoughtful crafted works to help themselves and encourage others be the positive change they wish to see in the world.
[36] [37] There is a manifesto and a checklist of goals for the work of the group which includes being welcoming,[38] encouraging and positive,[39] creative and non-threatening,[40] and focusing on global poverty and human rights injustices.
[44] On the back of this award, Sarah Corbett continues to work with large charities to deliver strategic craftivism projects and teach them in the art of gentle protest.
It rips open the enclosure of the domestic space to public consumption, exposing productive work that has contributed to women's invisible and unpaid labor".
Craftivist Carrie Reichardt has covered her home, car and studio with mosaics which utilizes ceramics, screen-printing and transfers to highlight "plight of inmates on death row, the Black Panthers, and the spirituality of the planet.
[55] Sarah Corbett from Craftivist Collective adds that craftivism is "to think critically and discuss compassionately how we can all be part of positive social change.
[57] Additionally, there has been The Kudzu Project, a guerilla knitting art installation started in Charlottesville, VA where flash installations of knitted kudzu vines were draped on Confederate monuments to "call attention to the role of these statues in perpetuating false narratives about the Civil War and white supremacy.
"The issue of inclusion/exclusion has long troubled the feminist movement, and it can be traced back to the suffragists, where Black women were excluded from conversations about voting rights".
Even though it's been moved online, the social aspects of craft "were considered highly salient" because of the "profoundly collective phenomenon" of practices like knitting.
Some crafters donated either a percentage of proceeds or in full, and others made crafts to spread the message of the movement, making t-shirts, face masks, and stickers.
