Rachel A. MacGillivray

Rachel A. McGillivray, Log Cabin Security, 2019

From Glengarry County, Eastern Ontario, Rachel A. MacGillivray is a multi-disciplinary textile artist and Mother who has made her home near Fredericton, NB. Working with natural materials, especially wool, is a cornerstone of her practice, which includes knitting, stitching, spinning, and gardening. Moved by the connections we all seem to make with cloth and clothing, reusing garments and old textiles is important in her studio, as are sustainability and the local textiles movement. Like many, the pandemic experience has greatly affected her work, and she’s now breaking out of the boundaries of her studio and leaning into gardening as artistic exploration. The realities of Motherhood and the blurring of all aspects of her life have also had critical impacts on her work and perspective.

Rachel is an instructor and studio head of textile design at the New Brunswick College of Craft & Design. Her work has been exhibited in museums and galleries including the Louvre, Canadian War Museum, Andrew & Laura McCain Gallery, and the Okanagan Heritage Museum. She has been the recipient of ArtsNB Creation Grants and national awards. Passionate about sharing her love of textiles, her writings have been published in PLY Magazine and Created Here.

Thanks to the support of the Connexion Artist-Run Centre and its Connexion Exchange Mentorship Program, Rachel has become involved with the ECH through a mentorship with Ron Benner.

Find more on her website: rachelmac.space

Recent Works

Devolution Triptych, 2018

Group Shot - Hers, 2019

Mummalien, 2018

Quilt Study #14 Rust, 2017

Shouldering it all, 2020

Indigo Lake, 2017

Worn, Not Worthless, 2020-21

WIP, 2021

Our Partners

E M B A S S Y C U L T U R A L H O U S E . C A

The Embassy Cultural House (ECH) is located on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, Lūnaapéewak, and Chonnonton peoples, at the forks of Deshkan Ziibi (Antler River), an area subject to the Dish with One Spoon Covenant Wampum and other treaties, colonized as London, Ontario. The ECH strives to create meaningful relationships between the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island and our contributors. The ECH honours the stewardship of the many Indigenous peoples who have resided on these lands since time immemorial.