Anthea Godfrey - Group Mentor

I received my BA Hons Embroidery followed by my Art Teachers Diploma at Goldsmiths College with Constance Howard, Christine Risley, Eirian Short. and went on to do a number of teaching stints in primary, secondary, mental health, prisons (Dr Lywards in Kent) and St Christopher’s, a Montessori boarding school in Letchworth. Then I went as an art teacher to Acland Burghley School in Tufnell Park (a social priority comprehensive school), where I helped to form the first Creative Art Department in the country: bringing together art, dance drama and music in collaborative cutting edge productions which formed core of the BBC education programmes in creative studies involving kinetics and lighting. During that time I became Creative Director of a performance group which took over from Pan’s People, designing sets, costumes and lighting.


After 13 years I moved to The London College of Fashion where I taught couture fashion embroidery . Over the years I migrated to initiating a Theatre Costume Interpretation Course which has become a BA Hons in Costume, Makeup and Technical effects.

All the time I was there I taught City and Guilds Embroidery Part 1 and 2 and became an external examiner for C and G and AEB 'O' and 'A' level becoming a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in the late 1980s and a nomination for Woman of the Year in 1988.

I was course Director of one of the largest Diploma in Foundation Studies Art and Design (500) specialising in fashion studies , interviewed international students for Degree and MA courses at The University of The Arts London for three years, before becoming bursar at Teikyo School Wrexham and then Principal of The International School for Creative Arts , Wrexham.

I have been Deputy Chair once and Chair twice at the Embroiderers Guild over a 35 year period and I am now Artistic Director.


Since retirement I have been a mentor for five embroidery groups. The sole purpose of my position in them is to steer and guide practicing designer makers into working as a group and mounting their work in public exhibitions.
The members work in a group for mutual benefit but I am there to advise and encourage individuality and creativity whilst producing quality outcomes.

I am proud to have been working with EAST since its inception.