Nazneen Ahmed

The Gateway Embroideries

Textiles, canvas, eyelets

The Mayflower Folk Embroidery Group, led by artist Nazneen Ahmed and assisted by Rachel Miell, learnt the traditional Bangladeshi folk embroidery form naksi kantha, a form of quilting embroidery, before producing pieces of embroidery depicting a meaningful story connected to Southampton as a gateway city of migration, arrivals and journeys. The group embroidered on arch shapes taken from Southampton’s medieval walls and buildings, structures which have witnessed the sailing of the Mayflower and many other notable ships. These gateway vistas onto the maritime history and everyday stories of Southampton have been assembled using eyelets, cord and canvas sailcloth by Nazneen.