Kait James is a proud Wadawurrung woman and award-winning contemporary artist based in Naarm/Melbourne. Utilising Punch Needling and embroidery techniques with wool and cotton, she embroiders with kitsch found materials to explore her indigenous identity and Anglo heritage. Her current work focuses on Aboriginal souvenir Tea Towels from the 70-80’s that generalise and stereotype her culture. She recreates this imagery and subverts them with familiar pop-cultural references that speak to the indigenous issues of that time.

Kait has recently completed several significant public art commissions including a 193 panel artwork which will permanently adorn the western façade of the Geelong Art Centre Redevelopment. Her work is held in various public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne; Art Gallery of Ballarat, Ballarat; Geelong Gallery, Geelong; Koorie Heritage Trust, Melbourne; Monash University Museum of Art, Melbourne; Epworth Hospital Collection, Melbourne; and Artbank, Australia.

Kait has been selected to participate in the 2023 Tamworth Textile Triennial. During her residency Kait will explore and experiment with different materials and techniques to work towards creating a large-scale work for this exhibition.