Technology’s Impact on Creative Traditions: Pieceful Co-Existence in Quilting

Abstract

Technology shapes both the meaning of quilts and the process of quilting. By using technology, the quilter molds her art form and ultimately preserves the values that quilting holds. For this study, we sought to investigate the influence of Internet technologies on quilters, using Behuniak-Long’s (1994) framework of the interaction between technology and three key social values (patience, connectedness, and expression). The source of data for this study was an electronic bulletin board that consisted of 1192 messages posted by 52 members of an on-line quilting group. Qualitative analysis of the electronic bulletin board messages was conducted, and findings indicate that quilters have adopted and used technology to enhance their lives without sacrificing social values and are maintaining the integrity of their work. By adopting technology on their own terms, they maintain the social values that quilting represents to them.