Imagining the Past

2009

Dawn Macnutt recently moved back to her home town in Nova Scotia. Since then, she has discovered that the building housing her workshop was built by her ancestors, country folk who cultivated flax in the old days. Found artifacts and linen thread symbolize ties that bind her to her forebears: those she knew, those she has seen on old photographs and others whose lives she can only imagine.

Dawn Macnutt, Nova Scotia, Canada

Dawn Macnutt is both a weaver and a sculptor. She is particularly interested in human frailty, which she transposes into shapes that amalgamate bodies and architectural elements. The artist has presented nearly 20 solo exhibitions and has participated in more than 100 exhibitions worldwide. Her work is in a number of public and private collections. She received an honorary doctorate from Mount St. Vincent University in 2005 and has been a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts since 2008.