Kait James
Kait James is a proud Wadawurrung woman and artist based on Wurundjeri Country in Naarm (Melbourne).
Working across textiles, embroidery, installation and sculpture, Kait James reclaims and recontextualises Aboriginal souvenirs - including tea towels, pennant flags, dolls and ceramic figurines - from the 1950s to the 1980s that generalise and stereotype Aboriginal people and culture. Since 2018, she has developed a distinctive visual style through the reappropriation of these mass-produced objects, often referred to as 'Aboriginalia'. Using embroidery, humour, pop-cultural references and political statements, she transforms these objects into works that challenge colonial representations while asserting contemporary First Nations perspectives.
James' current solo exhibition Red Flags is touring nationally from 2025–2027, following its debut at Warrnambool Art Gallery in 2024. Earlier this year, she presented Kiss My Moom at Neon Parc, Melbourne (2026). She is also currently represented in Wurrdha Marra at the National Gallery of Victoria and XX, Neon Parc's 20th anniversary exhibition. Recent group exhibitions include the 5th Tamworth Textile Triennial Residue + Response, curated by Dr Carol McGregor (2023-2025), Taking Back Language at Bundoora Homestead Art Centre (2025), Greetings from Wollongong at Wollongong Art Gallery (2025), Radical Textiles at the Art Gallery of South Australia (2025), Blak Infinite for RISING Festival (2024), RISING Art Trams (2024–25), Melbourne Now at the National Gallery of Victoria (2023), and A Soft Touch at 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art (2023).
James has completed major public art commissions for Sovereign Hill's Wadawurrung Cultural Precinct (2024), Greening the Pipeline / Wyndham City Council (2024), Geelong Hospital (2023), Ngarri Primary School (2023), and Geelong Arts Centre (2022–23). Her latest public artwork, Kunuwarra (Blak Swan), opens at the Ballarat Sculpture Park on 2 July 2026. Her work is held in significant public collections including the National Gallery of Victoria, Geelong Gallery, Koorie Heritage Trust, Monash University Museum of Art, Artbank, the Art Gallery of Ballarat, Murdoch University and the City of Melbourne.
James completed the Blak Design Program at the Koorie Heritage Trust (2020–21), holds a Bachelor of Media Arts (Photography) from RMIT University, and a Diploma of Visual Arts from NMIT.
In this interview, James reflects on the impact of her first solo exhibition at Koorie Heritage Trust in 2019, which pushed her to develop a focused body of work and take a major step in her practice. She discusses the importance of artists being able to speak out without fear of losing opportunities, the need for First Nations culture to be respected rather than simply consumed, and how NAVA’s Code of Practice and member insurance have supported her in negotiating fees, contracts and public art commissions.
Video production by Atypical 2025.
Image: Kait James, photo by Machiko Abe, 2026.
ID: Photo of Kait James sitting on a yellow stool in her studio at Gertrude Contemporary. She is wearing a black skirt and top, have long brown curly hair and is smiling at the camera. Behind her are large colourful artworks against plywood walls, timber framing, and neon coloured wool stored in a tower of crates.
About NAVA
The National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) is a Membership organisation that brings together the many voices of the contemporary arts sector to improve fundamental conditions of work and practice. We do this through advocacy, education and the Code of Practice.
