Fiber art for hot grrrlz🦋
Material Grrrlz is a community of fiber artists dedicated to celebrating the work of young women & queer people💗
This isn't your grandma's knitting circle. We build accessible fiber projects for fashion forward diy-ers obsessed with maximalism, reclaiming girlhood, and always being the best dressed at the craft store.
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come to the club
Come to one of our monthly fiber arts clubs in London, UK to create and connect with other material grrrlz IRL.
Letter from the Creative Director
Originally published in the March/April 2023 issue of the mag.
What does being a community of material grrrlz even mean? We don’t have to look far to find a long, beautiful history of fiber artists that have used their skills and creativity to make meaningful objects for their communities. Similarly to many material grrrlz, I was first introduced to fiber arts by the women in my family. My grandma sewed all of me Halloween costumes growing up, took me to her church quilting group every Wednesday morning, and could often be found sorting handmade baby blankets at her dining room table. From her, I learned deep respect for the love and skill that every fiber artist brings to their work, and saw how special communities centered around creating can be.
Because I grew up with so much reverence for textile work, I am dedicated to sharing that love and pushing back against any existing narratives that textile art is passive “women’s work.” Material Grrrlz is a community focused on celebrating the contributions of young women and queer people to the fiber arts community. The world “grrrlz” "(a blend of “girl” and “grr”) is a reference to the RIOT GRRRL feminist punk movement. Coined in the 90s in the Northwest U.S., the term RIOT GRRRL became both a rallying cry and an identity for individuals who protested against sexism in the male-dominated punk scene. Through the use of their creative practices, young women and queer people disrupted the punk scene and demanded that attention was paid to the deeply profound and informed ways in which they influenced the community, and the necessity of their contributions to the thriving of creative spaces and movements.
Today, Material Grrrlz sets out to subvert sexist beliefs about fiber arts and the value that women and queer people have as creators. In challenging the ways “woman’s work” has been subjugated, Material Grrrlz has evolved into a love letter to girlhood, and the playful, indulgent femininity that is too often belittled in patriarchal societies. Girly shit can be silly and sweet, but it is not to be trifled with. With every lace trim and dropped stitch, we engage with a long line of material grrrlz who came before us in the development of this practice, and pave the way for the practices of the future.
Material grrrlz to the front:)
Alexa Kari
Creative Director of Material Grrrlz