A Symphony of Needle and Paint
British born Eleanor Viegas taught art appreciation and was a museum education officer before she decided to settle down permanently in Goa. Goa is the homeland of her deceased husband, Nuno Viegas, who was also her art teacher at the Birmingham College of Arts. Eleanor spends her time in Goa involved in the Banyan Tree Project. It is her innovative way of bringing together a community of women to salvage needlework as part of the traditional arts. She is passionate in her endeavour to impart values of living a good life to children through the Ubuntu method. Obtaining a master’s degree in textiles at art college was probably the most natural choice for Eleanor as she had begun to embroider at quite a young age and enjoyed dressing up in her teen years, taking a keen interest in designing her own clothes. She envisions great potential for embroidery and hails its value as a part of our heritage. ‘Working as an art teacher, I liked to use textiles with my students to help them to expres