The Making of a Maintenance Artist is a documentary about Mierle Laderman Ukeles, who turned her focus to the unseen efforts that keep public spaces and society functioning. As a 'maintenance artist', she highlighted unpaid maternal labour and the dirty tasks often done by women.

A retrospective at the Queens Museum in 2017 brought her work into the spotlight. Her 1969 'CARE' manifesto declared her commitment to this role, challenging gendered expectations in art. The film explores how Ukeles's work intersects with famous artists like Duchamp and Pollock, yet she brings a unique perspective on maternal and unglamorous labour.

Ukeles’s interviews reveal the personal struggles that drove her art. Her statement to director Toby Perl Freilich that 'If I was a male artist, I wouldn’t be making maintenance art,' highlights the gendered barriers in the art world. She also criticises Pop art and Minimalism for their oversight of labour.

The documentary itself is a fitting tribute, with Ukeles explaining her works like the I Make Maintenance Art One Hour Every Day mosaic that captured 700 Polaroid photos of maintenance workers. The film portrays Ukeles as part of a broader community rather than an individual hero, which resonates with her message about collective effort.