Lunchtime Lectures: Embroidered Cartographies: Needle as Compass

In this lunchtime lecture, artist Ekta Kaul invites you to explore the evocative intersection of embroidery and cartography. From 19th-century geography samplers stitched by young girls as tools of learning, to embroidered maps used as instruments of propaganda and power, this talk traces how the needle has long served as a subtle yet potent compass. Ekta shares how she draws on this tradition in her own textile practice—using map-making to chart emotional geographies, migratory histories, and ancestral connections. She interrogates the role of maps in defining narratives that shape the world, and reclaims the needle as a means of shaping her own. Discover how embroidered maps can become vessels for stories that are both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Ekta Kaul is an award-winning artist known for her narrative maps, which intricately explore themes of place, history, and belonging through the mediums of stitch and abstract painting. Her works are featured in public collections, including the Museum of London, the Crafts Council, the Gunnersbury Museum, and Feltham Library, as well as in numerous private collections. A recipient of Cockpit Arts textile Prize (2021), Ekta is also the author of Kantha: Sustainable Textiles & Mindful Making, published by Bloomsbury UK. She lives & works in London. Please access Ekta's website by clicking here .