Great Western Embroiderers

When my mother left school at the age of 14 her headmistress asked her what job she wanted to do and she said she didn't know but it wouldn't be anything to do with sewing.

Within weeks of leaving school she began an upholstery apprenticeship and sewed for the rest of her life, retiring when she was 70 years old.

She made everything from her clothes and mine to church vestments and the stage curtains at the London Palladium. She worked for Lord and Lady Suffolk at Charlton Park and for a few soulless years as a machinist for a crash helmet manufacturer.

I have not inherited her talent. She used to say watching me sew was painful and that I was like 'a cow with a rifle'. But I can appreciate the talent of others and I found much to enjoy and admire at the Great Western Embroiderers Infocus Stitching exhibition currently on display at the Swindon Museum and Art Gallery.

The artists have used as their inspiration photographs from the museum's archives, creating hangings and three dimensional pieces using both traditional and modern techniques.

My personal favourites are The Family Album by Sally Taylor, Chimney Pots and Washing Lines by Margaret Robbie and Cups of Tree by Judy Joiner.

Sally uses old household table linen with layers of domestic stains and taters, tea, fabric paint and stitching to create this family album.

Margaret's inspiration for Chimney Pots and Washing Lines comes from a photograph of the Railway Village. The original image has been digitally manipulated and inkjet printed on cotton and handstitched.

Judy's Cups of Tree combines machine and hand embroidery and was inspired by a photograph of Swindon's Town Gardens.

Swindon Museum and Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday 11 am to 4.30 pm and The Great Western Embroiderers Infocus Stitching exhibition continues until September 7.

The Family Album by Sally Taylor