“The creation of things by hand leads to a better understanding of democracy, because it reminds us that we have power.”
Craftivism: The Art and Craft of Activism, edited by Betsy Greer, features the work of dozens of people activating through handmade objects.
View this image " Courtesy of Arsenal Pulp Press It explores projects that are deeply personal, ones that are directly political, and ones that engage and involve entire communities. They range from the (physically) tiny to the staggeringly large, but each one has its own meaningful impact.
1. Sayraphim Lothian’s Guerilla Kindness Project
View this image " Sayraphim Lothian / Courtesy of Arsenal Pulp Press The artist leaves foam cupcakes around Melbourne for strangers to find, “aimed at creating tiny bubbles of joy in the lives of passersby, tiny surreal moments that might make people do a double take.”
2. Significant Seams
View this image " Mark Burton / Courtesy of Arsenal Pulp Press Catherine West’s E17 Neighborhood Quilt is a map of her community in East London. Over 100 local residents offered their stories and participated the project, and 64 contributed patches to be stitched into the quilt. West asked her neighbors to fingerprint where they lived with a bottle of gold fabric paint.
3. Kim Werker’s Ugly Doll
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