This year, we celebrated the 130th anniversary of women’s suffrage in Aotearoa New Zealand. When the Electoral Act 1893 was passed, this landmark legislation saw New Zealand become the first self-governing country in the world to give all women the right to vote.

Curated by Wellington Museum, Suffrage in Stitches features a 300-metre long textile work made up of 546 individual panels, representing the length of the main Suffrage Petition presented to Parliament in 1893 (274 metres long with a page count of 546).

In 2018, in partnership with St Vincent de Paul and Vinnies Re Sew initiative, Wellington Museum held workshops that asked participants to use a needle and thread to create something inspired by women. The resulting 546 textile panels came together to create Suffrage in Stitches, honouring whakapapa, history, and the power of New Zealanders.

After touring to multiple venues across Aotearoa, this exhibition will be shown at Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum from December 02, 2023, until February 18, 2024.