Kirsty Mackay

British photographer

For the English field hockey player, see Kirsty MacKay.

Kirsty Mackay

Born|

Glasgow, Scotland

Nationality| Scottish
Alma mater| University of Wales, Newport
Known for| photography
Awards| Rebecca Vassie Memorial Award (2017)

Kirsty Mackay is a Scottish documentary photographer[1] living in Bristol.[2] Her first book is My Favourite Colour Was Yellow (2017).[3] In 2017 Mackay won the Rebecca Vassie Memorial Award.[2]

## Life and work[edit]

Mackay was born in Glasgow.[2][4] She studied photography at Glasgow College before leaving for New York City and London, to work as a photographer's assistant. She gained an MA in Documentary Photography from the University of Wales, Newport.

Mackay's first photo-book, the self-published My Favourite Colour Was Yellow (2017), documents the bias for the colour pink amongst girls in the UK.[3][5][6][7]

In 2017 Mackay won the Rebecca Vassie Memorial Award, mentoring and a bursary of £1250 to help in making her project The Fish that Never Swam.[2][8] The award is to help early-career photographers develop their careers. Mackay's project is in response to the Glasgow effect, "the impact housing and overcrowding has on the life expectancy of Glaswegians".[2][9]

## Publications[edit]

* My Favourite Colour Was Yellow. Self-published, 2017. With an essay by Jo B. Paoletti, "Generation Pink". Edition of 200 copies. OCLC 1008371099.
* The Fish That Never Swam. Self-published, 2021. With an abridged version of the "History, politics and vulnerability: explaining excess mortality" report by the Glasgow Centre for Population Health.[10] Edition of 500 copies. OCLC 1285666287.

## Awards[edit]

* 2017: Rebecca Vassie Memorial Award[2][11]

## References[edit]

1. ^ Katherine Pomerantz; Kira Pollack (6 March 2017). "The 34 female photographers you should follow right now". Time. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
2. ^ a b c d e f "'Glasgow effect' photographer wins award". BBC News. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
3. ^ a b Diane Smyth. "Photobook: My Favourite Colour Was Yellow by Kirsty MacKay". British Journal of Photography. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
4. ^ "Kirsty Mackay, United Kingdom". Retrieved 5 May 2018.
5. ^ Priscilla Frank (20 February 2015). "The intense relationship between little girls and the color pink". HuffPost UK. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
6. ^ Julie Kliegman. "A photographer made a powerful photo series about how pink is marketed to girls". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
7. ^ Agnès Gautheron. "Marquées au fer rose". Le Monde. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
8. ^ "Kirsty Mackay wins the second Rebecca Vassie Memorial Award". Rebecca Vassie Trust. 11 December 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
9. ^ Mackay, Kirsty (26 February 2021). "The Glasgow Effect: examining the city's life expectancy gap – a photo essay". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
10. ^ David Walsh, Gerry McCartney; Chik Collins; Martin Taulbut; G David Batty. "History, politics and vulnerability: explaining excess mortality". Glasgow Centre for Population Health. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
11. ^ "Arts News: Spectra returns to Aberdeen, photographer wins prize to study 'Glasgow Effect', SYT recuits 2018 company". HeraldScotland. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2018.

## External links[edit]

* Official website