Adrienne McKenzie

Bio

Adrienne has a BA in English – Creative Writing with a minor in the Japanese Language from Seattle University and a BAD in Art + Design – Fibers & Surface Design from North Carolina State University’s College of Design. She also earned her Master of Art + Design in Fibers & Surface Design from NC State. She was a Teaching Assistant during the duration of her Master’s Degree Program for Kathleen Rieder for the course Design Culture & Context and Justin LeBlanc’s Fibers Studio.

Adrienne works full time in her professional field at NC State’s University Theatre in the Costume shop as the Costume Technician/First hand as well as designing costumes for plays as requested for the program. She has designed and constructed costumes and garments for NC State DANCE, NCTC’s Youth Program, Temple Theatre, J. Dasher Designs (Les Miserable contract work), and FashionSPARK 2017. Adrienne was awarded the Wings on Wings recognition by Dean Marvin Malecha in 2013; In 2012 she was awarded a full-ride scholarship to attend the Penland School of Crafts for a Summer Course in “On the Body: Wearable/Sculptural”. In 2010 she interned with 6-time Tony Award-winning Costume Designer William Ivy Long at his Studio in New York City.

With her three degrees, Adrienne uses a wide assortment of knowledge: techniques and materials, from Fibers to Digital Software, and love of literature, to effectively design and build her professional, creative work. Narrative, stories, characters and identity and how they relate to and are carried by the human-condition/experience and connect/disconnect us all are expressed by her garments as they are conveyed via live performance on the stage and in public.

When not working at the NC State University Theatre, Adrienne has been engaged as a Lecturer at the College of Design teaching students such topics as Fashion Illustration, Sewing & Construction, Flat Pattern Making, Fibers: Materials & Processes, and Period Inspired Garments.

In her educational work Adrienne seeks to provide students with an extensive knowledge of historical to modern fiber techniques and materials that may then be developed into each individual’s unique expression of work as artists and designers.