Ava Bowden

This thesis explains the value of knitting and handiwork as consciousness-raising tools, as well as methods which encourage community and connection. It highlights the social, economic, and political conditions which denigrate activities associated with the feminine and explains how these frameworks can be challenged by knitting.

Through discussions of industrialisation and feminised labour, this thesis demonstrates the impact of unfair labour systems and artistic hierarchies on the perception of knitting. Pulling on theories of several writers and artists, it is determined that the act of knitting is inherently a feminist practice. Knitting’s place in the protest world is explored, as well as a few key examples of craftivism. From the Suffragettes to the quilts of Gee’s Bend, instances of feminine crafts are analysed and linked to writing on the topic. Knitting’s subversive qualities are also outlined, and how the textiles industry influenced ideas which were key in the development of communism and socialism. Capitalism's role in the normalisation of mass-production over handmaking is explored, deducting that overconsumption could be quelled by a more in-depth knowledge of labour and textiles production, especially by being a part of the production process. William Morris’s theories about leisure and labour are key here and help augment the conclusions made surrounding the importance of handiwork within a capitalist society which encourages disposability.