Through her textile artwork, British textile artist Kate Tarling stitches not just topographies but meaning, creating tactile pieces that capture the stories tied to the spaces we cherish.
Kate's love for assembling materials began in childhood when she discovered her mother's embroidery threads. Captivated by the array of colours and the small handbook of stitching techniques, that fascination stayed with her as she blended with her studies in geography and journalism.
Her distinctive approach combines these experiences - embroidered maps that are not just topographies but unique stories that reflect place memory and our personal connections with the landscapes around us.
In recent years, Kate has embraced the fluidity of free-hand machine embroidery, using the needle like a pencil and the thread to draw the landscape, hand-painted in carefully chosen hues. She stitches from Bristol to Beijing, Scotland to Australia, and Kate's embroidered maps have travelled far from her garden studio, finding homes across the world.
Kate joined Fibre Arts Take Two to talk about her artistic journey.
Kate had a passion for creating from a young age. "My earliest memories are full of scissors and glues and a drawer we had in the kitchen that was full of bits and pieces and colouring and painting. Probably the greatest joy I have is making things," she explains.
“Maps were also in my life from an early age because my Dad liked to go off-road and discover unfound parts of the country. This was an early introduction.”
Kate was drawn to embroidery as a form of art-making because she loved textures. " I like the texture and the feel of sewing."
On my dad's 70th birthday, I didn't know what to get him. Like a lot of men, he's quite difficult to buy for, and so I thought, ’Oh, well, he likes maps. I'll make him a map of where he lives’.
When I presented it to him, he showed genuine delight and a bit of emotion, which made me realise other people might like them."
From a single gift, Kate’s map-making has grown continually over ten years. “We all like to trace our journey on a map and put ourselves into where we live,” she explains. “I also have a terrible sense of direction so I find maps very comforting!”
Kate’s pieces are filled with stories and are often made for clients who have specific requests after discovering her on Instagram. She stitches roads, trees, houses, barns and more, using different colours to reflect the country, such as the deep mustards and mossy greens of Scotland.
Clients will get in touch and share a map or location and let her know what size they like. Kate will review aerial maps and explore options for what she can create. It becomes a to-and-fro process, with some consultation involved before the client signs off on the design and Kate starts stitching.
When making maps, Kate tries to echo the patterns of what she sees but she can’t usually include everything. “I have to make that choice when it comes to things like fields and decide how many I should put in, and where do I put them."
Kate will often work from photos sent to her by clients, which makes the process easier. “It can be useful to have photos that show details, colours and textiles, for example meadows with lines cut through them, or the different shades of autumn in the USA.”
Some maps are more challenging than others. A map based in Ireland, for example, included a long road with nothing around it. “It was literally called ‘Bogland’," says Kate. “But the more I looked, I could see the way the grass moved in the wind, almost like water, and I ended up really pleased with how it turned out. From seemingly nothing, I ended up with a map I loved.”
Watch Kate's full Friday Feature Artist interview below to learn more about how places can be converted into beautiful embroidered fragments that are simply stunning.
Advice for artists
Kate believes that every artist must believe in themselves. “Don’t let other people try to tell you what you should do.” She also recommends artists date their work and give it a title. “I haven’t always done this and I think it’s important,” she explains.
Finally, every artist must create a good space for themselves. “If you don’t have space you won’t do your work, so make a corner for yourself.”