I still recall the first time I was introduced to Gio Swaby’s magnificent textile portraits. I remember feeling a sense of pride as I witnessed women who looked much like my own aunties, cousins, and girlfriends celebrated in spaces that have historically misrepresented Black people. When you experience Gio’s vibrant portraits the compassion and care that she has for her subjects is palpable. Her work oozes love, beauty, liberation, and joy. Her affinity for thread and cloth is undeniable too.

Gio’s mom was a tailor. She made garments, so thread, fabric, and sewing machines have always been part of Gio’s life. Growing up, cloth was so present that she thought it was normal for every family to have a dining room as a sewing room. Because of its continuous presence, she never saw sewing as an art form. In fact, she didn’t plan to study art at all. It wasn’t until she took an art class as a college elective did she begin to see the possibilities. Two art degrees, an MFA, and one residency in the Bahamas later, she found her way back to cloth through a free motion technique that would define her work and lead her on a meteoric rise to contemporary art world fame.