The vibrant Mexican colours and motifs of the Otomi textiles have not escaped the eye of French fashion house, Hermes, which has translated them into beautiful embroidered scarves.

Through their project Hermes is now giving income and security to the skilled embroiderers of Central Mexico. Pictured is one of the original hand embroidered textiles or tenango given to the Powerhouse Museum by Australian collector, Robert Sweica in 2011. Sweica was so struck by the skilled and lively work that he brought a collection to Australia from the USA. The collection included 10 multicoloured pieces and 10 monochrome examples from white through to navy blue and tangerine. They were displayed in 2010 at the Barry Stern Galleries in Sydney.