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Paper short abstract

Women's craft labor is often undervalued as merely "domestic work." This study examines how rural Anatolian craftswomen use Instagram to combat this systematic invisibility. By securing paid work online, they are transforming perceptions of traditional labor and challenging stereotypes.

Paper long abstract

Across much of the globe, women’s labor remains systematically invisible. This invisibility is particularly striking within local craftswomanship, where women’s skills and significant contributions are frequently marginalized or entirely overlooked. As the feminist autonomist Mariarosa Dalla Costa has argued, assigning monetary value to labor fundamentally shapes how that labor is perceived socially. Because men are typically compensated for their contributions across various fields, activities coded as masculine become valued more by default, whereas women’s labor is often taken for granted and rendered invisible.

This phenomenon is acutely evident in Anatolian handicrafts: Women’s artisanship is often dismissed as mere domestic labor or voluntary, with no material value. Online searches for handicrafts rarely show the women whose labor makes these arts possible, instead displaying products or men in symbolic business interactions. However, instead of surrendering to this system, rural women are utilizing the rise of social media to fight back. They are increasingly using Instagram to become visible by forming craft collectives and raising their individual profiles.

This study examines precisely how Anatolian craftswomen use Instagram to gain visibility and secure paid work, ultimately aiming to transform entrenched perceptions of the traditional division of labor. Through Netnography and semi-structured interviews, the study identifies specific imagery and standard codes developed by craftswomen on Instagram, using it as an international stage for women who were previously dismissed as low-profile solely based on gender.