Monday, October 21, 2019

Formidable Women: Liza MacKinnon

Ada Lovelace

The talk of Lawrence, Kansas lately has been Liza MacKinnon's sculpture show at the Percolator Gallery. Too bad---but it's over.


Liza, a librarian, makes paper dresses to recall formidable historical figures. Mathematician Ada Lovelace's dress (about 3 feet tall) is made from pages of her biography and decorated with flowers fashioned from computer punch cards. The repeat pattern is zeroes and ones---all the numbers you need.





Detail of Marie Antoinette's dress with trim of currency. Most of the dress, about 2-1/2 feet tall
is tax forms.


She's also made smaller pieces; this one's about a foot tall.

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's dress is painted pages
from her book Frankenstein. Details include black cross stitches
in the skirt to represent the creature.



Susan Wolfe's photo of Mary Todd Lincoln's dress




Marie Curie with a little radium glow through
x-ray film

Lawrence's own Lucy Hobbs Taylor

Friend Kathy bought the Duchess of Pembroke's Elizabethan dress.


Liza's webpage:
https://www.mackomics.com/sculpture

Her Instagram page:
https://www.instagram.com/liza.mackinnon/?hl=en

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10 comments:

  1. Wendy Caton ReedOctober 21, 2019 at 11:42 AM

    Absolutely fabulous!

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  2. Nancy A. BekofskeOctober 21, 2019 at 2:31 PM

    Amazing! So creative!

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  3. Pieceful LadyOctober 21, 2019 at 5:38 PM

    Wow - very clever and so appreciate the detail.

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  4. Susan October 21, 2019 at 7:37 PM

    Thank you! I've never seen anything quite like that, and it's truly amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. LinOctober 22, 2019 at 2:07 AM

    WOW!

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  6. BarbaraOctober 22, 2019 at 7:56 AM

    Wonderful! Would love to have seen that exhibit in person. Thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Erica in AlaskaOctober 22, 2019 at 11:27 AM

    Wow! Amazingly creative. So glad you shared this.

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  8. The Civil War QuilterOctober 22, 2019 at 12:55 PM

    What an interesting display. I've never seen anything like it. Obviously created by a truly gifted artist.

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  9. LeeOctober 30, 2019 at 9:42 PM

    HOW DO I GET IN TOUCH WITH BARBARA BRACKMON??!
    I HAVE YOUR INFO FROM SEVERAL YEARS AGO.
    DO YOU HAVE A BOOTH AT THE FESTIVAL THIS WEEK-END??
    I WANT TO LOOK YOU UP THERE OR WHEREVER.

    I HAVE A VERY BEAUTIFUL AND VERY OLD QUILT I
    WANT TO CONSULT WITH YOU ABOUT.

    PLEASE CALL OR EMAIL OR WHATEVER!

    Lee Spilman
    12622 Greenspoint Drive
    Houston, Texas 77060

    cel ph 281 787 7955

    own and operate American Shutter Comapny

    also commissioner on the board of the ALDINE FIRE DEPARTMENT

    Best to you - and anxious to visit

    Lee

    ReplyDelete
  10. Liza MacKinnonDecember 12, 2020 at 6:01 PM

    Hello! I was looking through the "traffic" statistics on your site and found some had come from your blog. What a beautiful write up you did and thank you for all your kind words! I've made 4 new pieces for a canceled show in NM that are currently showing at the Jones Gallery in Kansas City. If you are local, you might check them out. They are mostly created on the theme of wings. Jemez Hummingbird, Interbellum Butterfly, Space Crow and Horsewoman of the Apocalypse: War.

    May I put a link to your blog posting on my "press" page? I would appreciate it. Please drop me a line at liza@mackomics and also let me know if you'd like to receive emails when I post to the blog. So far it is mostly behind the scenes pics and a super fast read.

    Thanks again!

    Liza MacKinnon
    Mackomics Studio
    www.mackomincs.com

    ReplyDelete