Homeless is part of my Broken Britain series of machine and hand stitched textile pieces. It is in an 7 inch embroidery hoop. This piece has machine stitched freehand and shows a homeless man sitting on a pavement covered in a blanket. I don't usually use text in my work but after seeing many images of homeless people on the Internet, a man had the sign, it really struck me as it is so true.

The series is concerned with those who go unnoticed in the margins of society, the vulnerable, the weak as well as the corrupt.

I use textiles and embroidery to compose people anonymously, not wanting to put a face to these people as they are generally ignored or unseen.

I collect these people from media images, memory and sketches. Constantly sketching until the image of the person is there, I then use my sewing machine to stitch them onto canvas and give them their surroundings. The Broken Britain work is always in an embroidery hoop for the contrast of the traditional against the image itself.

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