The Ladies

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, The Ladies: Isabella

baby shoes knitted by Isabella

The Ladies: lace fragment

detail, Pendants for Rita

Isabella’s pin cushion

Isabella’s lace

detail, The Ladies: Isabella

The Ladies: Isabella, detail

cast paper teapot, tea cup, saucer and chair

The Ladies: Isabella, detail

detail, The Ladies: Isabella

The Ladies: Isabella, installation view,

A Necklace for her Daughters, detail

detail, A Monument to Isabella

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.