HEIDI McKENZIE

Heidi McKenzie’s striking and elegant ceramic sculptures serve as metaphors and forms of portraiture exploring themes of identity, healing, and belonging. Drawing from her mixed Indo-Trinidadian and Irish-American heritage, her pieces reflect the complexities of hybrid identity and the nuanced sense of self it can create.

 

McKenzie’s ceramics exude both energy and mystery. With their rock-like appearance—evoking artifacts or fossils—they convey abstracted stories, thoughts, and experiences. At the same time, they suggest movement, transformation, and the possibility of undiscovered worlds.

 

McKenzie has represented Canada on the international stage, exhibiting alongside renowned artists such as Ai Weiwei, Theaster Gates, and Magdalene Odundo. In 2023, her acclaimed solo exhibition, Reclaimed: Indo-Caribbean HerStories, was featured at Toronto’s prestigious Gardiner Museum.

 

Her sculptures have been acquired by notable institutions, including the Royal Ontario Museum, Global Affairs Canada, the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, and the Surrey Art Museum, as well as by private collectors worldwide. McKenzie’s work establishes her as a vital voice in contemporary ceramics, seamlessly blending personal narrative with universal resonance.