Leila MacKenzie

Getty Marrow Curatorial Intern

Leila (they/them) spends most of their time writing, researching, and living in Los Angeles. When they aren’t scribbling on their back porch, they are most likely running along the LA River. Though evidently born and raised in South Florida, Leila is excited to stay in LA after graduating from the University of Southern California, where they majored in Comparative Literature as well as Applied Mathematics, with a concentration in Arabic. Leila is always delighted to chat about their thesis, which traces how papyrus, marshlands, and their subsisting cultural productions in Palestine reveal non-human resistance to territorial regimes of power. More broadly, Leila’s projects explore the intersection of ecology, space, and play, particularly in sites of extraction and deposition. Across Florida, LA, and Palestine, Leila’s work has moved through arts programming, agriculture, and media. They are deeply grateful and beyond excited to collaborate with and learn from Active Cultures this summer.