Painting the Tales

Painting the Tales brings together Katherine Soutar’s illustrations for The History Press Folk Tales series, showing how regional legends and traditional narratives became visual compositions. The collection ranges across Britain, with images connected to places including Cumbria, Northumberland, Cornwall, Suffolk and Sussex, alongside stories shaped by folklore, ballads and local storytelling traditions.

Soutar explains the inspiration behind each design and discusses the practical and imaginative process of interpreting tales through drawing, painting and mixed media. Her recollections also touch on collaborations with storytellers and the personal connections behind particular images, including the Northumberland cover featuring her son as Tam Lin. Taffy Thomas MBE contributes the foreword.