Sammy Mitchell is a local artist and mum living in Whiteinch. She’s been teaching arts and crafts during the summer programme. We asked Sammy to tell us a bit about herself:

‘I was born in Partick then I moved with my Ma and sister to Drumchapel. We came back to Whiteinch when I was seven. I was an absolute horror when I was young. I put my mum through hell. I don’t know why but I always felt I wasny good enough. I constantly had a chip on my shoulder. My ma used to say, It’s not so much a chip as a bag of totties. My mammy always praised me but everything would go wrong for me. See if we got walky talkies for Christmas, my sister’s would work and mine wouldny. I had the bad luck. The only thing I did well was drawing. I always did that. It was the only thing I was good at.

I was a single parent for years. Then when the youngest started nursery, they said, Why don’t you go and do something? As soon as they said college, I thought, Aye. So I went to Anniesland College at the Balshagray campus, to do an NC in sculpture. By that time my stepdad was ill with cancer. When I finished my NC I’d a show on and I wanted him to see it. I wanted them to see it, him and my Ma.

He walked it from Whiteinch to Thornwood to see my show, even though he had lung cancer. He was dead proud of me. That’s when I realised what I was worth. They said, We’ve always been proud of you, but it was then I felt it myself. I carried on to do the HNC and the HND. For me to get a pass on anything because I had to do the paperwork as well was something, you know. No matter how much you struggle you can do it. If I can do it, anyone can do it.

I don’t so much think about what the future holds for me. I want to do something for kids for the future. I’m going back to college to work voluntary with special needs students. I think now, when I help someone else, that’s me paying off for being so terrible as a kid. It meant a lot for my mammy to say I’m proud of you. And my dad as well.

The kids make art through their graffiti. I wish they could have something they could be proud of. See if kids get the chance to draw and paint, they’re proud of it. Cos I think a lot have got chips on their shoulder same as me. I’d like to see adults getting involved with them more, not being scared to do stuff together … that’s what you’d like to see.’

61 local children attended Sammy’s class over the summer. The Summer programme was funded thanks to Partick and Garscadden Area Committees at Glasgow City Council.