The Wonderful Work of a Modern Day Textile Artist

At our June meeting, we of the Lytham St Annes Branch of the Embroiderers Guild, were treated to a lively talk given by the friendly, and great fun to listen to, textile artist 
Jacqui Smith. 
Relating her story; from her first experiences with the textile art form and influences by a fabulous art teacher at school, Jacqui kept us entertained with amusing anecdotes of her education, training, struggles and accomplishments, whilst giving us an insight into her work and techniques.

Jacqui has worked in quite a few disciplines, from silk painting to dyeing and weaving with her own yarn; she has been a College Tutor and a Professional Artist selling work to galleries and private clients. Today she enjoys working working on silk, cotton, canvas and hand made paper as seen below, in this beautiful duo of poppies.

Her love of colour and texture is evident and pieces are painted and built up with collage elements before stitching with free-machine embroidery.

Jacqui told us that she likes to work on a few pieces at once and tends to make a series so that she can really explore a subject. These are two more in the Poppy Trio and are just as vivid in colour as the first, but unfortunately due to being behind glass and the new lighting in our meeting room, it was difficult to capture a true likeness. 
You can, however, see the layers of paper and the stitching on this large Poppy Head, below, that is embellished with beads.

This fun Washing Day picture, above, is one of my favourites. Its so bright and cheerful. 
See the detail of the washing line made of wire, below, and the wooden post.

Love the large flowers in the foreground, with beads added for extra sparkle. The sense of perspective, giving the illusion of a wide open space, full of sunshine makes me want to step into the picture for a visit.

These two cats are from a larger piece that has at least 9 cats in different frames and settings, each with its own personality and markings.

Above, you can see some of Jacqui's stitched words and little details like paw prints that made for a jolly look.  As well as different papers, she likes to use scraps of fabric or manuscripts and keeps to the same mono-filament thread in the bobbin of her machine just changing the top thread.

This is a happy Ginger Tabby, above, with a small head on a large, plump body he has a whimsical look about him. 

This piece is called Roof Top Meeting and is quite a large piece, incorporating gold paint to great effect to show a moonlit night.

Two more  Late Night Prowlers, below, this time having a chat on a brick wall. The flash has picked up the textures of the background materials and the ruffled fur of the two tom cats. It had a purplish hue to the night sky.

That is all I managed to quickly snap after a very interesting and jolly talk. If you would like to see more of Jacqui Smith's work click on this link here. 
A big thank you to Jacqui for travelling a considerable distance in the evening to come and speak to us and let us view her lovely work.