50 | AUGUST 19 • 2021

A

rtist Mackenzie Matlen has had a
lifelong fascination with the Statue of
Liberty.
To the 34-year-old, who has special needs,
the international symbol represented freedom
and hope.
After learning about the statue in an
American history class, something about
it “stuck with her all these years,” explains
Mackenzie’s mother, Terry Matlen of
Birmingham. Mackenzie even spoke about
the Statue of Liberty as a teenage girl during
her bat mitzvah speech at the Birmingham
Temple (now the Congregation for Humanistic
Judaism of Metro Detroit).
Fast forward more than 20 years, and
Mackenzie is still passionate about making the
Statue of Liberty a part of her life. While taking
art classes at the Friendship Circle’s Soul Studio
& Gallery, a creative space designated for adults
who have special needs, Mackenzie decided to
build an 8-foot-tall sculpture in honor of the
famous statue.
She assembled random items found at the
studio to craft the towering figure, among
others inspired by the Statue of Liberty, one of
which Terry submitted to the 2021 Michigan
Fine Arts Competition at Birmingham
Bloomfield Art Center. For Terry, who works
as a psychotherapist but is also a fine artist her-

COURTESY OF TERRY MATLEN

“SHE LOVES GOING TO SOUL STUDIO AND
MAKING ART. SHE’S EMBRACED BY EVERYBODY,

AND THEY CELEBRATE HER DIFFERENCES.”

— TERRY MATLEN

ARTS&LIFE
ART

A young artist with
special needs creates
Statue of Liberty
inspired sculptures.

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Freedom
to Express

Mackenzie Matlen and her 8-foot-high Statue of Liberty.