The language of 'text'iles: The literacy practices of the Boise Peace Quilt Project.

摘要

This research study investigates the literacy practices of the Boise Peace Quilt Project and their use of quilts as vehicles for making social, cultural and political statements. Working collaboratively since 1981, the BPQP quilters have produced more than forty quilts designed to promote peace, recognize peacemakers, and gain local, national and international support.; The theoretical framework of my study reflects four areas of related research: quilting, the New Literacy Studies, visual culture and feminist theory. I chose a case study approach for my study and incorporated the ethnographic techniques of interviewing, participant-observation, and data collection in order to gain a more detailed and in-depth look at the "culture" of the BPQP quilters.; Based upon my analysis of the interview transcripts, field notes of my visits to Boise, Idaho, e-mail communications, written documents from and about the BPQP, and the quilts themselves, I demonstrate how the relationship between quilting and literacy contributes to a broader understanding of what it means to be literate. I also reveal how the quilters' literacy practices are connected to their gendered identities and the culture in which they live.; Finally, I discuss my findings and conclusions about quilting as a vernacular literacy, the social aspects of quilting as a literacy practice, the genre of quilts, and quilts as social, cultural and political artifacts. I also address implications for literacy studies, women's studies, group work/collaboration, and education. Expanding the possibilities of art expression for both male and female students, blurring the distinction between folk art and high art, and encouraging a critical literacy curriculum in our schools are suggestions that stem from this research.; My inquiry into the literacy practices of the Boise Peace Quilt Project demonstrates that working collaboratively, through the visual arts, is a way to make positive changes in our world.