For Kait Hatch, Every Stitch is Sacred
Artist's embroidery series honouring trans, queer and disabled love continues to blossom
Originally, artist Kait Hatch had planned for their Sacred Love/Sacred Lives mixed-medium embroidery series to include six pieces, one for each of the following phrases: trans lives are sacred / trans love is sacred, disabled lives are sacred / disabled love is sacred, queer lives are sacred / queer love is sacred.
The project has blossomed since Hatch first conceived it in 2022, with a goal of 108 pieces and an open invitation to other artists for collaboration. The affirmations have expanded beyond the original six, with newer pieces celebrating the sacredness of Indigenous love/lives and intersex love/lives.
Hatch, who is comfortable with any pronouns, says the idea for the project was sparked by a You’re Wrong About podcast episode about eugenics with guest Eric Garcia. “He was saying, what would happen if we weren’t scared of disabled love? What if we were actually really thrilled by it and saw it as something beautiful and amazing?” Hatch recalls, sharing that both she and her wife live with disabilities. “I was thinking about how powerful it is just to say, these are the lives that are sacred. These are people. They’re my community.”
For Hatch, a practising Buddhist since 2008, sacredness has to do with the preciousness of human birth and how we all get to be individuals with agency, and the ability to think, reflect and act with compassion. “It’s very lucky, of all the lives we could have had, this is the one we get,” Hatch explains. “So that, for me, is sacredness.”
Hatch brings this feeling of love and respect to each piece they create. But there’s also an underlying fierceness, considering that the groups Hatch is honouring are often targets of hate. “The sacredness has a protective quality,” says Hatch. That’s also Buddhist: its protector deities are often depicted with flames and fangs.
While you won’t find many flames or fangs in the Sacred Love/Sacred Lives pieces (more rainbows, animals, plants and feathers), the medium is inspired by the political fierceness of Hatch’s embroidery teacher, Shannon Downey, a craftivist whose work went viral around the first Trump presidency.
“At first, I actually hated embroidery,” Hatch admits. “I found it really tedious and not very rewarding.” The breakthrough came when Hatch realized they could apply their mixed-medium sensibilities to embroidery, such as painting elements she didn’t want to stitch. With that realization, Hatch felt confident in their approach. Embroidery changed from a laborious task to something much more fun.
So far, Hatch has completed about 40 pieces, including several collaborations with other artists. For collaborative pieces, Hatch requests line art that she can turn into an embroidered piece on one of the project’s themes. They confirm the design with the other artists before beginning the stitching, and sends them the piece when it’s finished. “It’s a way of getting really familiar with work I admire and building a relationship with another artist,” says Hatch. “To me, it’s about reciprocity. And it’s also a gratitude practice, and spreading and sharing joy.”
While Hatch has purposefully eschewed a timeline for this project, she has given thought to creative ways to display the final suite of 108 pieces. (Another element of sacredness: 108 is a sacred number in Buddhism.) For example, Hatch plans to split any money made with all the artists she collaborated with, and has thought of pricing pieces in a way that supports organizations on the frontlines of social justice movements.
Hatch recently exhibited some of the pieces as part of a residency at Sparrow Artspace, and the project is viewable online. Artists interested in collaborating can reach out to Hatch at Hello@KSCHatch.com.
At its heart, Sacred Love/Sacred Lives is about joy, sharing and celebration. “I’m hoping that they are affirmations and reminders,” says Hatch of the pieces. “I think most people know that their lives are important and that they matter, just because they exist — and that that’s enough.”
About the Storytelling Project
The Storytelling Project raises awareness about Calgarians who, by living creative lives, are making Calgary a better city, effecting positive change and enriching others’ lives.
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