Mary Jane Sneyd

ABOVE: Church of the Good Shepherd, Tekapo. Based on a copyright-free photo by Lynette Burlison. Commercial cotton fabrics, batiks, used clothing. Raw-edge applique, thread sketching, free-motion stitching

Stitching Stories: The Art of Mary Jane Sneyd

I have no formal art training. I cannot draw, and I cannot paint. Yet, give me a piece of fabric and a spool of thread, and I can create entire worlds. It has been quite a surprise to the rest of my family!

For the longest time, art wasn’t my career—it was my sanctuary. I spent my days working almost full-time as a research scientist and running a lifestyle block, which left very little room for anything else. Fabric art was a hobby I squeezed into the margins of a busy life. But in 2022, redundancy shifted my path. Since then, I’ve been able to dive into my creative work almost full-time. While it may not earn a massive paycheck, it allows me to completely indulge my passion.

The Puzzle of the Stash

I find inspiration absolutely everywhere. Whether it is a photograph shared by family, copyright-free reference material, or the distinct challenge of a themed exhibition that forces me to think laterally, something will always grab me.

My process is meticulous and deeply tactile. I usually start by taking reference photos and digitally rearranging, reversing, shrinking, or enlarging them until the composition feels right. Then, I draw a pattern onto Mylar. From there, I dive into my ginormous stash of fabrics.

My most trusted, favourite tool in the studio is a pair of micro-serrated scissors. I spend hours cutting out tiny, intricate shapes by hand, and those micro-serrations are the only thing that keeps the fabric from slipping. I temporarily fuse the pieces onto a base sheet, and once I am happy with the arrangement, I sit at my machine to stitch it all down. Depending on where the final piece will be shown, I might quilt it, wrap it over a canvas, stretch it, or leave it as a soft hanging artwork.

When I am in the intense design phase or selecting just the right textures, I need absolute silence. But once the boring machine stitching begins? I turn on an audiobook—any genre at all, so long as it isn’t fantasy, sci-fi, or self-help—and let the needle fly.

From Dunedin to the Winterless North

My artistic roots belong to the south. Coming from Dunedin, I was heavily supported by the Otago Art Society. They are the group that truly got me going as an artist, and I still love exhibiting with them.

Recently, however, life has brought a fresh chapter. I moved to Whangārei to be closer to family in the North Island, and the new environment is already creeping into my work. I see and hear kingfishers everywhere now, so I have been creating a series of them to celebrate my new surroundings. I’ve also been making appliquéd, upcycled jackets to sell at a local craft co-operative where I volunteer. They are quick, completely unique, and they keep me beautifully engaged while I figure out what my next major piece will be.

While I love the challenge of portraits, my work has expanded into landscapes and animals. I am heavily inspired by world-renowned textile artists like Katie Rundle, Susan Carlson, and Sophie Standing, as well as the distinct print techniques of artists like Deborah Campbell. In fact, I am eager to push my own boundaries soon by trying abstract work—an area where art and I historically do not mix well—and experimenting with printing directly onto fabric.

A Quietly Global Impact

I predominantly enter mainstream art competitions rather than traditional quilt shows, and I like the problem-solving that comes with pushing fabric into contemporary art spaces. Mistakes are made and lessons are learnt frequently in my studio, but that is all part of the joy.

Though I consider myself a local maker, my fabric and thread have travelled the globe. I have exhibited across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, the USA, Canada, and France. My pieces sit in private collections stretching from Hong Kong and China to Italy and Germany—many bought by tourists passing through Dunedin over the years. One of my pieces featured in a contemporary art book is currently touring the USA.

A few years ago, I was thrilled to win the national Aotearoa Quilters exhibition. But 2026 has brought a new pinnacle: I am incredibly proud to have been selected as a finalist for the prestigious Wildlife Artist of the Year 2026 exhibition in London. If the world continues to settle down, I hope to start regularly entering international shows again soon.

Right now, though, my grand global ambitions are on hold for a much more pressing deadline: a wedding present for my niece. There is a clock ticking on the studio wall, a pile of fabric waiting, and a story to be told, one stitch at a time.