John McKenzie (1897 - 1972)

The remarkable work of John McKenzie has only recently come to light. Despite exhibiting his slates at the Royal Scottish Academy Summer Exhibition, the Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts, and The Arbroath Art Society, (and in two solo exhibitions at the Arbroath Public Library), McKenzie sold no more than a handful of sculptures during his lifetime. Initially McKenzie worked in wood, but disappointed with the results, he turned to roof slates and other materials found to hand. Mckenzie accentuated the depth of his shallow designs by polishing them with linseed oil mixed with slate dust. The works have retained their original presentation _ the wall plaques with a narrow oak moulding and the free standing reliefs set onto angled stands with bronze coloured resin set around the asymmetrical edges. He produced no more than three to four reliefs a year, which amounted to less than one hundred and fifty over his entire caree