Crafting Feminism : A Study of the Intersection of Crafts and Contemporary Feminisms in Sweden

Abstract: This thesis studies the intersection of crafts and feminism in the Swedish context by focusing on two events organized in Stockholm in the spring of 2018: a feminist market and a #MeToo tagging event. The thesis focuses on the relationship between crafts and contemporary feminism in the Swedish context, in particular how feminism is expressed and done through crafts as well as what kind of feminism is expressed and whom it can be said to represent. Moreover, the thesis explores possible connections between Swedish feminist crafting and activism. Based on field notes from the two events as well as recorded material from six interviews with seven women from the two events, this thesis suggests that there exists a feminist crafts movement in the Swedish context. Moreover, this thesis shows that there are many ways in which crafts may be feminist, such as when crafts are used to convey explicit feminist statements, when they are placed in public or when they empower women. The kind of feminism expressed through crafts has women as its subject, though without specifying if this includes all women or only certain kinds of women. As demonstrated by the visitors and exhibitors at the feminist market and the tagging event, this feminism seems to mainly attract white, middle-class women and feminists. The question of whether feminist crafts in general, and these two events in particular, are connected to activism cannot be easily determined and it is thus argued that what is of importance is not if these two events can be labeled as activist, but rather if they can be understood as events that make a difference. As a result, this thesis suggests that feminist crafts reflect a broader Swedish feminist discourse that, despite acknowledging the importance of intersectionality, fails to analyze how sex/gender intersect with ethnicity and race. A critical discussion is thus needed within the feminist crafting community where the issue of homogeneity within the community is prioritized. More specifically, this thesis suggests that the community ask itself how it can change, and what actions could be taken in order to make feminist crafts more attractive to a wider group of feminists. Likewise, they should also reflect on the underlying factors as to why this community is homogenous and why it fails to attract a more diverse crowd of feminists.