Stand Up for Democracy and Have Hope

Hand embroidery and machine stitching on fabric depicting a person with the word hope on their shirt and a speech bubble that says stand up on a red and white striepd background with stars around them made by artist Christy Strickler

Detail view of a hand embroidered and machine stitched human figure in a political textile artwork by Christy Strickler

Detail of a textile artwork showing a stitched speech bubble containing the words 'Stand Up' in hand embroidery.

Close-up of stitched star motifs featuring free-motion machine lines and hand embroidery on fabric.

Materials: Watercolor, felt, fabric, cotton embroidery floss. Cotton thread, beads

45.7 CM X 12.7 CM

Created in 2026

This piece was created for the Democracy in Stitches craftivism project and is currently on display in the Stand Up online gallery exhibition.

Several weeks before I had a purpose in mind, I began painting and stitching on some characters that I had created in a previous 30 day art challenge as a way to calm myself. Stitching can be a form of meditation. I did not know what the character wanted to say until I saw the Democracy in Stitches project. I did not plan the piece. It came together intuitively as each stage progressed. It is a combination of free-motion embroidery and hand stitching on fabric and felt. The cheerful character wears a shirt with the word Hope on it to remind us to have hope in the face of adversity. I chose a bright red background with white stripes embellished with stars as a nod toward the American flag. I chose off-white fabric rather than a pure bright white. The fabric color, messy stitching, and slightly frayed sections of the white lines symbolize that things in the United States are not perfect. Some of the stars are made of cheap plastic, which represents the current state of capitalism in the US.