The Ladies: Isabella
Storefront Studio, 1144 4th Ave, Prince George, BC, August 25- November 1, 2016
“The legacy of Isabella McKenzie is built of pulp and human spirit. The story is almost wordless.
The Ladies illuminates Barton-Taits ancestry, FRANK PEEBLES / PRINCE GEORGE CITIZEN AUGUST 23, 2016
detail, Pendants for Rita
detail, The Ladies: Isabella
detail, A Monument to Isabella
The Ladies: Isabella, detail
baby shoes knitted by Isabella
The Ladies: lace fragment
The Ladies: Isabella, detail
Isabella’s lace
cast paper teapot, tea cup, saucer and chair
A Necklace for her Daughters, detail
detail, The Ladies: Isabella
detail, The Ladies: Isabella
The Ladies: Isabella, installation view,
Isabella’s pin cushion
The Ladies: Jean, Rita & Helen
The next exhibition in the series curated by Maeve Hanna featured the Ladies: Jean, Rita, and Helen, Isabella’s daughters.
Rita was a teacher, bookkeeper, single mother, grandmother, breadwinner for Isabella and Helen, holder of the ancestral memories; Jean was a nurse, an independent woman, a financial whiz, a traveler; Helen was also a nurse, a great storyteller, and a very funny person. Their lives reflect the lives of women after the two world wars and during the depression – they were independent, resourceful, thriving on their abilities to survive whatever life threw their way with humour and intelligence.
Monument to Jean
detail of bridge table
Rita’s hand made coffee set
detail, bridge accessories: cloth, pencils, tallies, table markers
The Ladies: Rita, Jean, Helen detail
held in the hand: glass detail
detail
Marriage Trunk for Helen, Paper chair and table
detail, The Ladies: Jean, Rita and Helen
detail, The Ladies: Jean, Rita and Helen
detail, The Ladies: Jean, Rita and Helen
Paris in the Thirties
Jean’s housekeeping notebook
Monument to Rita
detail
Bridge Cloth III
A Blouse for Rita travels
detail
Rita’s coffee set
Bridge Cloth II
Jean’s graduation photo
detail, The Ladies: Jean, Rita and Helen
Helen’s slip travels to the Shield
Monuments to Rita, Jean and Helen
