Betsy Greer is an asker of questions and maker of many things. She moves a lot and got her M.A. in Sociology from Goldsmiths College in London in 2004. Her master's dissertation was on knitting, DIY culture and community development.
The dissertation is here. It's a PDF file that you can open with Adobe Acrobat. She honestly didn't submit her final with the title in some weird spaceship font, but for some reason the file looks like she's all about some crazy sci-fi. She knows that a) the piece may not fit everyone's idea of academia and b) that there is a glaring typo on the table of contents (and maybe elsewhere, too).
She loves small joys, big dreams, soy products, leg warmers, 80s nostalgia, bad television, Lionel Richie and making things. One day she wants to live in a cottage by the sea filled with yarn, pets, love, books, laughter and cake.
In November 2008, her first book, Knitting For Good! will be published by Shambhala. The book is a guide to how to use your knitting and creativity to improve your life, the lives of those in your community and the world at large. Also in November, Handmade Nation will be released, in which Betsy has an essay. This book is a companion book to the upcoming documentary of the same name and features several essays and 24 crafter profiles of some of the best peers and friends a girl could ask for!
For even more information on Betsy and/or craftivism:
.Audioactivism interview.
.Cinnamon's rundown of the craftivism panel in Chicago.
.Contributor to CROQ zine.Want to know more about CROQ? Check out this!
.Contributor to Whipup collaborative craft blog.
.Craftivism: Is Crafting the New Activism?, Columbia Chronicle Online Edition, Summer 2006.
.The Crafter Culture Handbook, by Amy Spencer.
.Craftypod #18, Interview with Diane Gilleland, January 27, 2006. (See also Craftypod #26)
.Craftivism in three parts, Knitchicks.co.uk. (Parts 2 + 3 forthcoming)
.DIY: The Rise of Lo-Fi Culture by Amy Spencer.
.Encyclopedia of Activism and Social Justice, Sage Publications.
.Faces of the Goddess zine.
.The F-Word zine.
.Groundbreakers, Pistil Magazine, Issue 6.
."The Handmade Life," LA Times Magazine, 6 November 2005.
.Hip Home Ec by Jean Railla.
.Indie Craft Documentary interview.
.Making Stuff, edited by Ziggy Hanaor.
.Knitpro Needlecraft Art Show.
."Knot in Our Name," Wendy Somerson, Bitch magazine, Issue 33.
.Ms. Films, Winter 2006 workshop presenter.
.Third Wave Craftivism via The College Chronicle.
.Super Crafty by PDX Supercrafty. More here too!
.Wikipedia definition of Craftivism
.USATODAY.com: The Cool and The Crafty
.Viva las craftivistas!, Guardian, 29 May 2006
.Vogue Knitting, Spring 2006 issue, "Shear Frustration."
.What You Make It, Issue #2
.Panelist, "Art Meets Activism", Neither Model Nor Muse Symposium, Duke University
.The Guardian's Rebel Knitting Supplement, July 26, 2008. Photograph.
.Buying In, Rob Walker.
.Bead Simple, Susan Beal.
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