British artist Deb Shepherd relocated to New Zealand over a decade ago where she creates her stunning contemporary portraits. “I call myself a stitch artist as I do not see my current artworks as embroidery but rather a combination of free motion stitched drawing, mark-making and text with painting and some mixed media.”

Firstly where did you grow up and where do you live now? 

The sixth of seven daughters, I grew up on the Wirral Peninsula, in the North West of England, on a wonderful council estate full of children. In 2007, then living in Hampshire, and after many moves around the UK, my hubby and I travelled to New Zealand for what was to be our dream holiday. We toured the South Island for over a month on motorbikes, and very quickly decided that this would be the place for us. At the end of 2009 having gained our visas, we sold up, travelled around the UK saying our goodbyes, and then migrated to New Zealand on Feb 14th 2010. We spent some time touring the North Island in a motorhome, and then found our little piece of paradise in a rural native bush block, on the Coromandel Peninsula. This has become our own little sanctuary, which we share with all the wildlife, alongside our cats and numerous (currently seven) gorgeous goats that we have adopted. 

What is your background in textiles?

Some of my earliest childhood memories are of sitting with my mum learning to sew, knit and crochet. My mum was creative and resourceful, she had to be, and we were all encouraged to find our creative outlets. If I wasn’t practicing my gymnastics or dancing, I would usually be drawing, or sewing dance costumes with mum on her vintage singer treadle machine. I studied textiles and art up to ‘A’Level and then completed a one year intensive Art & Design Foundation Course in Further Education before studying for an Art & Design Degree, with a specialism in Fashion & Textiles, at Leeds University’s Bretton Hall Campus. Our weekly life drawing classes and art history lectures supported workshops in a wide range of disciplines from photography and printmaking to ceramics and 3D studies. On completing university, having produced an embroidered fashion collection alongside my graduation show, I was offered a position as a ladies wear designer/pattern maker for a company in Yorkshire. I can quite honestly say that my first year in industry was one of the biggest learning curves I have had. I went on to produce a number of fashion collections under my own label, all incorporating embroidery, and worked with a number of private clients, before returning to study for a full time Post Graduate Teaching Qualification. From here I was engulfed into the world of teaching art, fashion & textiles, both full and part-time for over 20 years, in a number of further and higher education colleges around the UK and here in NZ. Besides working with some incredible students, teaching gave me the opportunity to constantly upskill, and I continued to build my own freelance design, patternmaking and bespoke ladies wear business alongside.

What is it about textiles as an art form that appeals to you? 

I would say it’s endless possibilities as a tactile medium through which to express ourselves and visualise ideas. As we humans are surrounded by functional textiles every day of our lives, and also using them to express our identities, I have always been frustrated by the outdated generalised view that textiles cannot be “fine art”, so the victory for me comes whenever I hear someone’s reaction to my artwork, when they get up close and then realise how it has been created. 

How do you describe your work?

I call myself a stitch artist as I do not see my current artworks as embroidery but rather a combination of free motion stitched drawing, mark-making and text with painting and some mixed media. 

I love to experiment and create with a wide range of mediums but more often incorporating stitch. I have a vintage Irish (Singer) Swing Needle Machine which I have been enjoying trying to master, and in a quest to loosen up my work, and take a more meditative approach to creating with stitch, I am currently producing large scale portraits of my icons, in particular from my love of rock music. 

Since moving to NZ I have been inspired by WOW (https://www.worldofwearableart.com) and have created a number of award winning wearable art ensembles, as well as multiple awards for my stitched artworks.

How do you create a piece?

To me every piece is often a development of the last, so usually requiring a different starting point, but I would say that I am very process driven, which I think stems from my working life. I begin by researching around an idea, note taking, sketching and experimenting with materials, composition, colours etc. I always work with a visual journal / sketchbook as for me this is so much part of my whole creative journey. 

With my recent stitched artworks I have been stitching and painting on canvas at a much larger scale, so in order to preserve my eyesight, sanity and keep myself mobile, I try to move smoothly between planning, painting, waiting for paint to dry, stitching, visiting my goats, socialising, stitching, yoga, and repeat…but not necessarily in that order!

Where do you work?

For me I am living my dream – I now work from home surrounded by my animals. I have two small studio spaces (always a work in progress) on the edge of our garden from which I look across and down the valley and can also view the goats in their paddock. I currently use one cabin for sewing and painting and the other for pattern making, cutting and framing….but as I said, always a work in progress!

I know this is a hard question but how long does a bigger piece take?

If I was to condense the time working on a larger portrait it would probably be 2 to 3 weeks full time, but I never work like that! Unfortunately, one bad habit I picked up from creating fashion collections is that when I have a deadline I usually end up working through the night. But the difference for me now with my artwork is that I usually lose all track of time anyway and can easily burn the candle at both ends without even realising it.

What are you most proud of in your art career so far?

I think after winning “The Shell Sustainable Award” with my first time entry to WOW in 2012, it was then having my wearable art creation selected to be on exhibition with around  26 other designers’ creations in “The WOW Factor: 25yrs in  the Making“  which ran for 18 months at Te Papa, New Zealand’s National Museum in Wellington.  https://www.friendsoftepapa.org.nz/the-wow-factor-2/

Do you have any advice for aspiring textile artists?

I’m an old Goth, hence the reason I suppose for working late at night and loving the isolation, but one thing I’m finally realising in life is that the more I create from the heart the more successful it seems to be … whatever your idea of success is of course! Your creative time is precious…be true to yourself…create what you love…love what you do, otherwise try something else!

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