NeedleXChange

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #64.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Peter Frederiksen.

Peter Frederiksen is a Chicago-based artist whose machine embroidered cartoon vignettes are filled with tension and dark humour. In this second part of our NeedleXChange we talk about the craft of old school animation, the joys of living in Chicago and why Peter's titles are in important part of his work. Oh, and he...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #63.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Peter Frederiksen.

Peter Frederiksen is a Chicago-based artist whose machine embroidered cartoon vignettes are filled with tension and dark humour. In this first part of our NeedleXChange we talk about how this particular combination of form and content has become Peter's signature style and how he shines a light on a culture we take for granted.<...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #87.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Stephanie Kelly Clark.

Stephanie is a contemporary embroidery artist whose work transforms humble homes and everyday moments into rich visual stories stitched with painterly precision. In this first part of our conversation, we explore her creative upbringing, the role of art in parenting, and her evolving relationship with embroidery as a medium. From homemade Halloween costumes...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #86.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Stephanie Kelly Clark.

Stephanie is a contemporary embroidery artist whose work transforms humble homes and everyday moments into rich visual stories stitched with painterly precision. In this first part of our conversation, we explore her creative upbringing, the role of art in parenting, and her evolving relationship with embroidery as a medium. From homemade Halloween costumes to thread-based...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #[].

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Orly Cogan.

Orly Cogan is a New York-based textile artist whose embroidered fabrics contain other-worldly images of modern concepts with a dream-like twist.

In this second part of our NeedleXChange we discover Orly's creative process, how she explores power dynamics in her work, as well as her favourite music/podcasts/books and a heartfelt...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #33.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Orly Cogan.

Orly Cogan is a New York-based textile artist whose embroidered fabrics contain other-worldly images of modern concepts with a dream-like twist.

In this first part of our NeedleXChange we find out how Orly came to needlework, how her work ties in with the modern art scene and we discover possibly the greatest parenting trick...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #56.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Diana Weymar.

Diana Weymar is an embroidery artist and curator, and founder of the Tiny Pricks project, a collaborative needlework project that immortalises quotes from Donald Trump as a crowdsourced documentary of an unusual part of American history. Diana is the author of Crafting A Better World, a book focusing on collaborative craftivism which...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #55.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Diana Weymar.

Diana Weymar is an embroidery artist and curator, and founder of the Tiny Pricks project, a collaborative needlework project that immortalises quotes from Donald Trump as a crowdsourced documentary of an unusual part of American history. Diana is the author of Crafting A Better World, a book focusing on collaborative craftivism which...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #12.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview John Thomas Paradiso.

John Thomas Paradiso is a Washington-based artist who has been exploring the intimacy of gay culture through needlework for over 30 years.

Using hand embroidered quilting techniques, working on surfaces including leather and suede, and using traditional materials like doilies to mask the graphic parts of his subjects, John’s wo...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #11.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview John Thomas Paradiso.

John Thomas Paradiso is a Washington-based artist who has been exploring the intimacy of gay culture through needlework for over 30 years.

Using hand embroidered quilting techniques, working on surfaces including leather and suede, and using traditional materials like doilies to mask the graphic parts of his subjects, John’s wo...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #52.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Emma McKee.

Emma McKee is a Chicago-based cross stitch artist whose work is adored by hip-hop artists and basketball icons.

This is the second part of our NeedleXChange and we explore Emma's relationship with Chicago, her love of her Dad, how she has evolved as a designer and we check out her...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #51.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Emma McKee.

Emma McKee is a Chicago-based cross stitch artist whose work is adored by hip-hop artists and basketball icons.

This is the first part of our NeedleXChange and we talk about how Emma came into cross stitch and the circumstances in which her work came to the attention of the hip-hop community. I love chatting...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #46.

Danielle is an South African artist known for her vibrant and expressive embroidery work, characterised by bold colours, movement, and layering, creating a visual impact that evokes joy. She believes in the inherent goodness of people and the power of support and validation in fostering self-confidence.

This is the second part of our NeedleXChange and we explore Danielle's colour theory, discuss some of her other...

It's the school summer holidays and I'm taking a break. So instead of new chats, I'm replaying some of my old favourites!

This is a repeat of episode #45.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Danielle Clough, aka Fiancé Knowles.

Danielle is an South African artist known for her vibrant and expressive embroidery work, characterised by bold colours, movement, and layering, creating a visual impact that evokes joy. She believes in the inherent goodness of people and the power of support and validation in fostering self-confidence.

This is the first part o...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Róisín Phelan, a contemporary embroidery and textile artist who has built her practice around punch needle.

Part 2 opens with practical punch needle wisdom (use the flat "wrong" side for detail, match your needle to your cloth, and keep the fabric taut), then gets into how she taught herself to embroider water and people, why she leans into a blocky, illustrative style rather than photorealism, and where her signature blue figures came from (it started with a single blue felt tip). We range across the books she rereads, music an...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Róisín Phelan, a contemporary embroidery and textile artist who has built her practice around punch needle.

We start on common ground (a shared love of squared notebooks and to-do lists) before getting into how she creates the visual identity for the family brewery, the cafe, and the Colours coffee company, and how building a whole visual "world" means a new design comes together in an afternoon rather than a fortnight. Róisín talks candidly about being at home with her baby, why making art is how she look...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Sean Alistair, a Germany-based contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for work that mixes beauty, chaos, identity and emotional honesty.

After the first chat, I realised I needed to ask Sean more directly about the work itself, so we spoke again. In this final part, we dig into Sean’s artistic practice: music as a way of naming and feeling the work, anti-war imagery, anger as creative fuel, why “pretty” can be the wrong read, how feedback can help or derail an artist, and how Sean is rebuilding a portfo...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Sean Alistair, a Germany-based contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for work that mixes beauty, chaos, identity and emotional honesty.

In this part, we move from the studio into parenthood. Sean talks about becoming a dad, the strange way men are praised for basic childcare, how having a baby interrupts and reshapes a creative life, and the difference between Sean Alistair the artist and Sean the dad. We also spin through Sean's cultural touchpoints, but the conversation was so good that I omitted to dig into Sean's artistic practice...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Sean Alistair, a Germany-based contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for work that mixes beauty, chaos, identity and emotional honesty.

In this first part we focus on Into the Wild, the exhibition Sean curated to build community rather than simply put work on walls. We talk about diversity without tokenism, what it means to be an outsider artist, labels like queer, bipolar and textile artist, and how Sean thinks about making, destroying and remaking work as part of the same creative life.

Links:

Website: seanalistair...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Renan Estivan, a São Paulo-based contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for queer tapestries that put the male body at their centre.

In this part we get into Maressia and Bataille's idea that the post-industrial body isn't allowed to rest, what slow work has taught Renan about his own queerness, why textile slips past the censors in ways photography doesn't, his current Marseille solo show L'Homme Renommé, and his cultural touchpoints.

Links:

Website: renanestivan.com

Instagram: renan.estivan

Intro music is...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Renan Estivan, a São Paulo-based contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for queer tapestries that put the male body at their centre.

In Part 1 we get into his mum's Arraíolos rugs and the embroidery tradition she passed on, choosing design at UNESP over art, how the pandemic in Salvador collided with a pixel-art drawing to spark his first erotic cross stitch, his shift onto the tufting gun, and the Brazilian tapestry lineage running from Kennedy Bahia and Tropicália through Leonilson.

Links:

Website: ren...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Shea Wilkinson, a contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for switching mediums to protect their balance - and chasing the next beautiful pattern.

Shea talks candidly about quitting quilting “at the snap of a finger,” taking a two-year hiatus from art, and why felting became a healthier, slower practice - less addictive, less competition-driven, and more sustainable day to day.

We get into process and motivation (including using audiobooks to pull yourself into the studio), plus how parenthood sparked a new series idea: photographing soap bubbles up clos...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Shea Wilkinson, a contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for turning big questions into fibre work - from the cosmic to the microscopic.

Shea’s practice moves between felt backgrounds, needle felting, hand embroidery, beading, and a research-led obsession with things like crystals, geometry, and the mystery of what we can’t quite explain.

Links:

Website: sheawilkinson.com

Intro music is Martyr by Nevin via Epidemic Sound.

About NeedleXChange

An artist interview podcast exploring contemporary embroidery and textile art. Host...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Charlotte Wood, a mixed media artist known for exploring the beauty in ugliness through character-led, emotionally resonant work.

Charlotte trained through an MA in embroidery and works across hand, machine, and sculptural textile approaches - with a deep curiosity for how craft and experimentation collide.

We go deep on her making: learning the rules before breaking them, moving from perfectionism towards controlled chaos, what commercial embroidery taught her about speed and being “less precious”, and how her technician/teaching role (plus special effects + foam fabrication skills) are shaping what...

In this episode of NeedleXChange, I interview Charlotte Wood, a mixed media artist known for exploring the beauty in ugliness through character-led, emotionally resonant work.

Charlotte’s recent practice includes a standout 3D textile sculpture, “the man on the chair”, alongside layered narrative pieces where colour, form, and surface stitch carry memory and mood.

We talk about her Hand & Lock journey, how she uses characters to hold sadness and introspection without losing joy, and the Leonard Cohen influence behind the work — plus how ideas like object constancy and “finding balance” show up in what she makes.

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Jessica Pile and Robert Ossant.

Jessica Pile and Robert Ossant are researchers and authors focused on couture embroidery, combining technical analysis with historical and creative context to better understand how and why these works are made.

In this second half of the conversation, we move beyond the garments themselves into the wider landscape of fashion. Topics include the economics of clothing, sustainability, and the tension between high fashion and everyday wear.

The discussion also turns to education, skill development, and the personal journeys that led Jessica...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Jessica Pile and Robert Ossant.

Jessica Pile and Robert Ossant are researchers and authors focused on couture embroidery, combining technical analysis with historical and creative context to better understand how and why these works are made.

In this conversation, we explore their approach to breaking down couture garments - examining not just the stitches, but the ideas behind them.

The discussion moves through fashion history, the role of inspiration versus technique, and how couture functions as both a creative laboratory and a cultural statement. Along the...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Helen Adams.

Helen is the Textile Curator who has been shining a light on contemporary textile art on her terrific blog since 2014. Her fantastic book, Textile Fine Art was published in September 2025.

In this second part of our XChange, Helen shares how she became the Textile Curator. We talk about starting a website to “wake up the world”, what it’s like building something as a team of one, and the practical realities of monetising a niche platform.

We also get into why social media can feel l...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Helen Adams.

Helen is the Textile Curator who has been shining a light on contemporary textile art on her terrific blog since 2014. Her fantastic book, Textile Fine Art was published in September 2025.

In this first part of our chat we talk about making a textile art book that lasts longer than algorithms, how you choose artists when everyone is good, and what kinds of work genuinely “buzz your buttons”.

We also get into exhibitions and the pressure of doing textile art justice in major spaces, including Saat...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Iskren Lozanov.

Iskren Lozanov is an embroidery artist living in Ibiza, originally from Bulgaria. He came third in the 3d Textiles category of The 2025 Mr X Stitch Contemporary Needlework Prize and 2nd in the Open Textile Art category in the 2024 Hand & Lock Prize.

We pick up with what’s next for Iskren Lozanov’s practice, including using everyday objects, collaboration hopes, and how this technique can be applied to almost anything. We also get practical about making a living, brand work vs artwork, staying well, and end on favo...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Iskren Lozanov.

Iskren Lozanov is an embroidery artist living in Ibiza, originally from Bulgaria. He came third in the 3d Textiles category of The 2025 Mr X Stitch Contemporary Needlework Prize and 2nd in the Open Textile Art category in the 2024 Hand & Lock Prize.

We talk about language and identity, Ibiza as a place to make work, and how Iskren Lozanov’s practice moved from fashion into embroidery and sculptural pieces like “Rebirth” and “Veil of Transcendence”, including the research, planning, and labour behind them.

Timestamps:

00:00:00...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Katarina Orolinov.

Katarina is a Slovakian contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for laser-cut perspex panels built from lace and geometric pattern logic.

Katarina shares early making (drawing, sewing, textiles clubs) and a schooling route that builds serious technical range (embroidery, bobbin lace, weaving). We dig into heritage vs experimentation, studio life, what plays in the background while stitching, and the closing line: the dream upgrade is a laser cutting machine.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 – The origin story: drawing, sewing, and deciding on art early

...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Katarina Orolinov.

Katarina is a Slovakian contemporary embroidery and textile art artist known for laser-cut perspex panels built from lace and geometric pattern logic.

Katarina traces the work from a bobbin‑lace brief into bitmap squares, then laser cutting/engraving perspex and stitching into it. We talk architecture as a pattern engine (glass blocks, safety glass, reflection), and the practical reality of scale: thousands of holes, modular panels, and machine‑bed limits.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 – “Come to the perspex…”: lace meets laser cutting

00:02:55 – Finding patterns in gl...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Charlie Reeder aka Stitchsperation.

Charlie is a cross stitch designer with an unashamedly joyful aesthetic.

In this first part of our NeedleXChange, we talk imposter syndrome, naming the inner critic (“Brenda”), and how stitching can be a safe, meditative place to build confidence.

Charlie shares ideas around stitched affirmations and repetition, plus the beginnings of Stitchsperation: bold typographic work, painted backgrounds, and designing what they couldn’t find.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:01:30 - Art vs craft vs design (and getting put in box...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Charlie Reeder aka Stitchsperation.

Charlie is a cross stitch designer with an unashamedly joyful aesthetic.

In this first part of our NeedleXChange, we talk imposter syndrome, naming the inner critic (“Brenda”), and how stitching can be a safe, meditative place to build confidence.

Charlie shares ideas around stitched affirmations and repetition, plus the beginnings of Stitchsperation: bold typographic work, painted backgrounds, and designing what they couldn’t find.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:02:47 - Imposter syndrome and “Brenda” (naming the inner critic)

00:06...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Ruth O'Leary.

Ruth O'Leary is an award-winning embroiderer who’s been exploring AI image generation as a tool for design, iteration, and self-expression.

In part two, we move from the big AI conversation into the grounded maker reality: how Ruth learned needlework, what the Embroiderers’ Guild taught her, and why community still matters even in an online world.

Ruth also breaks down their process — using AI outputs as reference material, collaging and redrawing in Procreate, then translating it into applique and embroidery — plus a quick run through...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Ruth O'Leary.

Ruth O'Leary is an award-winning embroiderer who’s been exploring AI image generation as a tool for design, iteration, and self-expression.

We talk about AI as a “new medium” (and the early chaotic phase of it), parallels with the Jacquard loom and past industrial shifts, the difference between screen-based fakery and physical needlework, and how Ruth uses AI outputs as reference material that gets reimagined through applique + embroidery to speed up making without losing what Ruth loves about stitching.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Introduction

0...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Robert John Hodge.

Robert John Hodge makes cross-stitch work based on Renaissance sculptures, using a CMYK / screenprint-style layering approach and recurring Wingdings symbols.

In this half we jump into Robert’s newer series - smaller, quicker pieces that work like little stitched collages: videogames, screenshots, photos, culture… and, for reasons we absolutely get into, a whole run of nuclear weapons tests.

Part 2 is where we widen out into the stuff that feeds the work: horror films from the 70s and 80s, documentaries that stitch history into a co...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Robert John Hodge.

Robert John Hodge makes cross-stitch work based on Renaissance sculptures, using a CMYK / screenprint-style layering approach and recurring Wingdings symbols.

We talk about being a finalist in the Hand & Lock Embroidery Prize, how the work is technically constructed, and the bigger ideas underneath it: art vs craft, nostalgia, digital “glitch” language, and how slow, tactile making can transform images that started life as fast and disposable.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:01:10 – Hand & Lock finalist story + mentor + family cheer squad

00:03:56 – Renaissa...

In this episode of NeedleXChange I interview Martha Hussey.

We talk fresh off the heels of Martha’s solo show in London and discuss DIY curation as well as Royal Academy highs and near-misses, Martha talks textiles’ growing place in contemporary art and why she’s already sketching the next body of work. We also hit the soundtracks, the films, the books, and the beauty in the mundane that fuels her studio.

Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:01:30 - The Challenges of Curating an Exhibition

00:06:46 - The Royal Academy Experience

00:09:39 - The...