Sarah Corbett is a speaker, professional activist, author and the founder of

Craftivist Collective The Craftivist Collective is "an inclusive group of people committed to using thoughtful, beautiful crafted works to help themselves and encourage others be the positive change they wish to see in the world." It was set up in 2009 by Sarah Corbe ...

, a social enterprise which uses the technique of

craftivism Craftivism is a form of activism, typically incorporating elements of anti-capitalism, environmentalism, solidarity, or third-wave feminism, that is centered on practices of craft - or what has traditionally be referred to as "domestic arts". Craf ...

- combining craft and activism - to engage people in social justice issues "in a quiet, non-confrontational manner involving pretty, handcrafted gestures of defiance." She wrote ''A Little Book of Craftivism'' which was published in 2013,Corbett, Sarah (2013). ''A Little Book of Craftivism''. Cicada.''How a piece of fabric can change the world: Sarah Corbett at TEDxBrixton''
youtube.com, 23 October 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014 and ''How To Be A Craftivist'', published in 2017.Corbett, Sarah (2017). ''How To Be A Craftivist''. Unbound.

Craftivism

Corbett has "a huge passion for craft".Nikki Shaill, ''Craftivist Collective'', ''Lady Craft'' zine for Ladyfest Ten, Summer 2010 She has no formal training as an artist or craftsperson, saying "I can do it anyone can do it." Her main craft is cross-stitch,Holly Howe, ''Sarah Corbett'', ''House'', Autumn 2010 which she often uses to make mini-protest banners. She has described her work as using "creativity to make the public aware of the struggles people are still going through".DK Goldstein, ''Make a Stand'', ''Pica Pica magazine'', 2010 Work by Sarah Corbett has been exhibited and sold in art exhibitions including: * 'Article 31.1' at Workshop 44. * 'Renegade Potters and Extreme Craft' at Ink_d.Hannah Bullivant, ''The Craftivist Collective'', http://www.ameliasmagazine.com/earth/the-craftivist-collective/2010/04/05/, 5 April 2010 * 'Riot Here, Riot Now' at W3 Gallery. * 'Spoken Threads' in New York and Los Angeles. * 'Gentle Protest' in Stockholm. She has spoken about craftivism at various

TedX TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...

meetups, Salon London, Lost Lectures, Sunday Wise at

The Ivy The Ivy is a British restaurant which is known for being popular with celebrities. It is located on West Street near Cambridge Circus in London, opposite the Ambassadors and St Martin's theatres, making it a popular restaurant for theaterg ...

, the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

and at

Women's Institutes The Women's Institute (WI) is a community-based organisation for women in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The movement was founded in Stoney Creek, Ontario, Canada, by Erland and Janet Lee with Adelaide Hoodless being th ...

. She has also given guest lectures at

Parsons The New School for Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhatt ...

and

Leeds College of Art Leeds Arts University is a specialist arts further and higher education institution, based in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, with a main campus opposite the University of Leeds. History It was founded in 1846 as the Leeds Scho ...

, participated in a project with

Falmouth University Falmouth University ( kw, Pennskol Aberfal) is a specialist public university for the creative industries based in Falmouth and Penryn, Cornwall, England. Founded as Falmouth School of Art in 1902, it was later known as Falmouth College of Ar ...

and has been a Twitter chair and guest blogger for the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

. She is a columnist for Crafty Magazine and MrXStitch.com and blogs regularly for Campaign Central. Corbett was featured on ''Stitched Stories'', a documentary by Northern Productions. She was also a panellist discussing 'Not Knowing' for the Lush Speakeasy podcast. Corbett's 2016 talk ''Activism Needs Introverts'' was featured on the

TED TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depa ...

homepage in November 2017 and has generated over 1 million views since. ''Sarah Corbett: Activism needs Introverts''
ted.com. Retrieved 23 November 2017

Background

Corbett grew up in West Everton in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

in the 1980s, when it was one of the most deprived wards in the UK.Katie Harris
''Meet the women quietly crafting their own revolution''
''The Daily Telegraph'', 13 March 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2014 Her mother is a local councillor in Liverpool and her father is a

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

.Sharon Barnard and Jameela Oberman, ''I use my craft skills as a tool for peace'', ''Woman Alive'', May 2012 Her parents have been a big influence on Corbett's politics, for example by taking her to South Africa as a childKarima Adi, ''Craftivism'', ''Lionheart'' magazine, issue 4 and on protests to save local housing from demolition. She has said "All we ever do around the kitchen table is talk about religion and politics."Charlotte Humphery, ''We'll change the world stitch by stitch'', ''Oh Comely'' magazine At school Corbett was voted

Head Girl Head boy and head girl are student leadership roles in schools, representing the school's entire student body. They are normally the most senior prefects in the school. The terms are commonly used in the British education system as well as in Aus ...

and successfully campaigned for lockers for students. She studied at the

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

Jameela Oberman, ''Stitch in time'', ''Big Issue in the North'', 10–16 October 2011 where she was active in numerous campaign groups. After graduating she took a course on grassroots community action based on the work of

Steve Biko Bantu Stephen Biko (18 December 1946 – 12 September 1977) was a South African anti-apartheid activist. Ideologically an African nationalist and African socialist, he was at the forefront of a grassroots anti-apartheid campaign known ...

. She went on to work for various international charities in their youth and community programmes and campaigns departments, including

Christian Aid Christian Aid is the relief and development agency of 41 Christian (Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox) churches in the UK and Ireland, and works to support sustainable development, eradicate poverty, support civil society and provide disaster ...

and the

Department for International Development , type = Department , logo = DfID.svg , logo_width = 180px , logo_caption = , picture = File:Admiralty Screen (411824276).jpg , picture_width = 180px , picture_caption = Department for International Development (London office) (far right ...

. In 2011 she worked on campaigns for

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...

in London. In 2012 she went part-time at Oxfam to devote more time to the Craftivist Collective. Corbett is a Christian who says faith plays a role in her craftivism and that she has "learnt to act out my faith rather than just talk about it". One of Corbett's most distinctive features is her tattooed arms, which include a pair of scissors wrapped in thread, a sewing needle, measuring tape, and safety pins. The 'craft tattoos' remind her of "what I do and why and to make sure I keep going."Ruth Lewy, ''I get frustrated knitting socks. I want to make a difference.'', ''The Times Saturday Review'', 10 December 2011

References

External links

* Vida, Obra y Libros usado
de Sarah-Corbett

Craftivist Collective website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corbett, Sarah 21st-century English women writers British women activists English Christians English human rights activists English women artists Living people Oxfam people People associated with the University of Manchester People from Everton Textile artists Women human rights activists Women textile artists Year of birth missing (living people)