5 minute read
Badass Cross Stitch
BADASS CROSS STITCH
A conversation with craftivist, Shannon Downey
We chatted with cross stitch artist and craftivist Shannon Downey, whose work went viral at the peak of the 2017 Harvey Weinstein misconduct revelations. Shannon chats with us on her craft, using her platform to express and on going viral.
Badass Cross Stitch was created by Bostonborn and Chicago-based Shannon Downey. “I've lived a wacky and adventurous life and my path only makes sense to me.” Her work has ranged from middle school teacher, to domestic violence/sexual assault advocate, to event producer, to writing teacher in the prison system, to entrepreneur, to college teacher. “This past June, I shut down the marketing company that I started 10 years ago in order to take on the position of Director of Development for one of my former clients, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | Chicago. I have spent 2 years of my life (collectively) traveling and living around the world. I want to be Indiana Jones, so I have a bachelors in Archeology and a masters in Outdoor Education.” She adds, “I have two of the cutest dogs that have ever walked this earth, and I got engaged this month to the most wonderful and talented woman ever.”
Besides moonlighting as Indiana Jones, Shannon is a fiber artist, feminist, activist and craftivist. She started Badass Cross Stitch to inspire others to join on her journey to find a digital and analog balance. Additionally, “I wanted to inspire folks to put down their devices and create something meaningful, express themselves, and say something powerful.” The name stems from Shannon’s favorite word–– badass. “[It’s] sort of a sub-brand for me. I have a blog called Seriously Badass Women where I feature––wait for it––seriously badass women. I love associating embroidery and cross stitching with the term badass because it creates a real sense of cognitive dissonance.”
She says it’s her own form of subliminal messaging to help folks think differently about the art form; to take it beyond a precious or easily dismissed “women’s craft”.
I wanted to inspire folks to put down their devices and create something meaningful, express themselves, and say something powerful.
Shannon describes craftivism as something built around action and outcomes. “I love to create opportunities for movements. Building and mobilizing community is my jam.” She continues with an example. “I live in Chicago and we have a pretty epic gun violence problem. My fiancée ––oh that was fun to say!–– co-founded a program called Project FIRE and works with young people who have been injured by gun violence, teaching them glass blowing and entrepreneurship. One day, I logged how many times I heard or read the word gun. At the end ofthe day it was 72 times. 72 times! So that night, I stitched a gun.” She posted it to Instagram and her community asked her to turn it into a pattern so that they could stitch one too. After creating the pattern, her Instagram feed flooded with guns. “I asked folks to stitch guns and mail them to me. They did. 200 from all over the world in just a few months. I partnered up with Project FIRE and we hosted an epic gallery show at Pilsen Outpost. Over 500 people attended the opening and we sold all of the pieces and all of the glass art made my Project FIRE. We raised over $5,000 to fund the next semester of Project FIRE.” The most moving part of this for Shannon was the letters received with the submissions. “Folks were so happy to have a way to do something that would have a real impact. So many of us feel so helpless when we are thinking about giant, systemic problems. Sometimes you just need an opportunity to take action.”
That is just one example of how Shannon uses her platform to make a difference. “What’s the point of a platform if you don’t use it to speak up for what you believe in? I have very little tolerance for people who have earned fame or a community or a visible platform who are so afraid of losing it that they never stand for anything.” She believes her platform exists because she uses it to speak up. “People need that right now. They need to see that other humans are willing to say what needs to be said and do what needs to be done. I will always stand up and speak up as loud as I possibly can so that someday the folks who don't feel safe or strong enough to do it right now will be able to.” As the granddaughter of a Lowell Mill Girl and an actual Rosie the Riveter, and daughter of a Union president and entrepreneur, Shannon grew up on the picket line defending the labor movement. “There was no way I would ever be anything but an outspoken activist.”
When the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct revelations came to light earlier this year, one of Shannon’s cross stitches in particular went viral: ‘Boys will be boys held accountable for their fucking actions.’ Though this piece went viral during that period, it was initially created during then- Presidential candidate Donald Trump’s ‘grab ‘em by the pussy’ video scandal. “I stitched that thinking this. This is the smoking gun.” Yet the piece didn’t garner the response from tens of thousands until the Weinstein allegations came about.
She says it has been overwhelming, to say the least. “Millions of people used my art as a vehicle to take a stand against misogyny and abuse. They used my art as a catalyst to share their own stories. How fucking brave is that?! How humbling is that?” Tens of thousands of tags and gut-wrenching stories later, Shannon says she has read every single one. “I pause and thank them aloud for being so damn brave.” She continues, “I like where this is going. I like that women are fed up. I like that women are speaking up. I love that women are fucking angry and I love that they aren't backing down. I see a change. I feel it. I am bathing in it. I am so proud of women right now.”
As for the future of Badass Cross Stitch? “I would love to find a way to travel the world teaching everyone how to use their talents and voice to create positive change; to teach everyone how to movement built, share stories, craft narratives, and win hearts and minds. I believe in people and my super power might just be seeing what they are capable of - even when they can’t.” Shannon’s advice for up-and-coming artists, stitchers, activists stands true to her overall message: “Say something. Do something. Take action: any action. Find your voice. Use your voice. Give credit. Honor other people's work and ideas. Start now–– no seriously, stop reading this and go do something right now!”
