Knit For Defense

Animation ain’t all bunnies and robots ya know. Knit For Defense premieres at the Smithsonian in DC July 20th. You may knit for the shear joy of feeling the yarn in your hands or making your own clothes. In another era, those socks you’re knitting could have been part of a feminist war effort.

Knitting garments for combat troops was popularized during World War II as a domestic effort that activated knitting circles into a feminized labor force. Who knew? Well, apparently Cat Mazza did. Her work combines craft with digital media to explore the overlaps between textiles, technology and labor. Pretty cool.