This is not an ordinary quilt.
I posted this on my Grad Project blog, but I’d like to re-post it here for the crowd who hasn’t been following my schoolwork. So without further ado, here’s Gezellig:
How it works:
The quilt is made up of pockets with buttons, and static squares. One of the static squares has been outfitted with an array of LEDs, and one of the button pockets has been stitched with conductive thread. I sewed a circuit onto a separate piece of fabric, which leads into an Arduino that’s been embedded into a secret pocket in the quilt. When the button pocket is closed, the circuit is completed and the Arduino is programmed to tell the LEDs to pulse softly.
The button pocket.
Pulsing LEDs behind one of the static blue pockets.
How it helps lonely people:
The intent of the Proof-Of-Concept is to show how a ‘traditional’ medium can be updated with technology, and send a message to its users without being obtrusive or tacky. Quilts are, in my opinion, one of the best examples of a comfort object, and they tend to be treasured artifacts that carry a family’s story through multiple generations.
In context, this project would be kept in the home of a lonely, elderly person. When updated through social media by their family (that element is going to be detailed in the next semester), the quilt will be able to show a visual message to the user that they are being thought about, and loved. For people who are separated from their families due to distance or disability, having a visual reminder of their family can be a powerful motivator. The creative element of the quilt (putting photos or other nostalgic items into the pockets) should also help the user to get into a creative mood, sharing memories of their family with others and contributing to the personalization and customization of their quilt.
What’s next?
Next semester (Spring 2010), I plan on adding to the customization of the quilt in a number of ways: First, I’ll be working on the capacity of the user’s family to update the quilt via social networks such as twitter, flickr, and facebook. I’d like to aggregate information from the APIs of those services, so that family members can trigger reactions on their grandparent’s quilt through something as simple as tagging a photo, or using a #hashtag on twitter or facebook.
Second, I’ll be working on the visual elements of the quilt. I’d like for the static pockets to do something more than just pulse an array of LEDs. Though I felt like it was a good end-point for this semester, I’m not satisfied with the message it sends. I feel as though the message can become more complex without complicating the integrity of the quilt as both a medium and a metaphor. I’d like to figure out a way to incorporate either thermo-chromatic inks, or OLED panels so that the message can become slightly more tangible and ‘realistic’.
Third, I’d like to work on my craftsmanship and try to create an object that’s both technologically sound, as well as technically beautiful. Quilting is a timeless activity, and I come from a long line of smart women who have perfected their craftsmanship through quilting and needlework. Over the course of the next semester, I’d like to get my quilting to the point where I’m very satisfied with my quality of stitching, accuracy of layout, and create more complex geometries/patterning.