Cat Mazza is an American textile artist. Her practice combines

tactical media Tactical media is a term coined in 1996, to denote a form of media activism that privileges temporary interventions in the media sphere over the creation of permanent and alternative media outlets. Examples Tactical media projects are often a mix ...

, activism, craft-based art making and animation in a form that has frequently been described as

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 ...

. She is the founder of the craftivist collective microRevolt. Mazza is an associate professor of art at the

University of Massachusetts Boston The University of Massachusetts Boston (stylized as UMass Boston) is a Public university, public research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the only public research university in Boston and the third-largest campus in the five-campus Un ...

Biography

Cat Mazza (born 1977 Washington, DC) has a BFA from

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

and received her master's degree from

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute () (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York, with an additional campus in Hartford, Connecticut. A third campus in Groton, Connecticut closed in 2018. RPI was established in 1824 by Stephen Van ...

. Her work has been featured in exhibitions nationally and internationally including the exhibitions ''Radical Lace & Subversive Knitting'' at the

Museum of Arts and Design The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD), based in Manhattan, New York City, collects, displays, and interprets objects that document contemporary and historic innovation in craft, art, and design. In its exhibitions and educational programs, the mus ...

in New York City'', Disobedient Objects'' at 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 ...

in London, ''Craft Futures: 40 Under 40'' at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and in "She Will Always Be Younger Than Us" at the

Textile Museum of Canada The Textile Museum of Canada, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a museum dedicated to the collection, exhibition, and documentation of textiles. History The Textile Museum of Canada was founded as the Canadian Museum of Carpets and Textiles ...

and the Art Gallery of Calgary, along with work from

Orly Cogan Orly Cogan is an Israeli-American fiber artist who works with and combines multiple mediums. She is best known for crafting hand stitched embroidered figures on top of previously embroidered vintage fabrics. Early life and education Orly Cogan ...

, Wednesday Lupypciw, Gillian Strong, and

Ginger Brooks Takahashi Ginger Brooks Takahashi (born July 26, 1977) is an American artist based in Brooklyn, New York, and North Braddock, Pennsylvania. A self-identified “punk,” Takahashi grew up in Oregon. She co-founded the feminist genderqueer collective and jou ...

in connection to the "When Women Rule The World: Judy Chicago in Thread" exhibit also at the Textile Museum of Canada. Mazza has received many prestigious grants from institutions including

Creative Capital Creative Capital is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in New York City that supports artists across the United States through funding, counsel, gatherings, and career development services. Since its founding in 1999, Creative Capital has commi ...

, the

Experimental Television Center The Experimental Television Center (ETC) (1969–2011) was a nonprofit electronic and media art center located in upstate New York. History The Experimental Television Center (ETC) was founded in 1971 by Ralph Hocking. The center was the result ...

, the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...

in Media Arts,

MacDowell Colony MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire, United States, founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDowell ...

and the Craft Research Fund. She received a

grant in 2012 for her project Knit for Defense and was a presenter at the 2011 conference

The Influencers The Influencers is a festival that mixes art, guerrilla communication and radical entertainment. It is curated by Bani Brusadin, Eva & Franco Mattes. In 2012, one of the guests was the Russian art collective Voina Voina ( rus, Война, p=v� ...

. From 1999-2002 Mazza additionally served as an Eyebeam staff member. She began working as a professor in the Art Department at UMass Boston in 2007.

Projects

* Knit for Defense ''2012.'' A project investigating war in film through the creation of visual knit stitches. This project is a combination of craft, labor, and combat and resulted in an animated work. It is currently in the permanent collection of the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (commonly known as SAAM, and formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds o ...

. To make this work, Mazza gathered video footage from military conflicts including World War II, the Vietnam War and contemporary wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and ran the footage through software which converted video pixels into stitch patterns for knitting. She then created an animation piece from the knitted stills. * Nike Blanket Petition ''2003-present.'' A wide blanket with the

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

logo made by networked craft hobbyists from over 40 countries with the purpose of protesting against

's labor abuses. This project was created under umbrella of microRevolt. This was on view in the exhibition Disobedient Objects at the

in London, England. In an article for the London Review of Books, Nick Richardson describes the project: "One of the best alchemical weapons in the show is a 15-foot-long blanket with the Nike ‘swoosh’ on it that was knitted and crocheted by the ‘post-craft’ artist Cat Mazza and an international group of hobbyists. Where Nike tries to conceal the labour that goes into its products, Mazza’s piece makes the labour plain. It also challenges Nike’s claim to own its logo – how can anyone own a tick?"

Notes

External links

Cat Mazza
on post-craft.net
microRevolt
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mazza, Cat 1977 births Living people Carnegie Mellon University alumni Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni American textile artists 21st-century American artists 21st-century American women artists Women textile artists