Born in Motueka in 1931, Macaskill studied at Victoria University College, and teachers" colleges in Wellington and Dunedin. Arriving in London in February 1955, she studied full-time for five years at Chelsea School of Art, gaining a Diploma of Fine Art and a National Diploma in Design.
She trained as an art advisor with Gordon Tovey and worked for the Department of Education in both Auckland and Wellington. She was for a time an assistant to sculptor Henry Moore. Following her husband"s death in 1969, she returned to New Zealand in 1972 to live in Wellington, where she remained resident for the rest of her life.
His death in 1994 inspired her painting Cascade.
At the 1996 general election Macaskill was a list candidate for the Labour Party. She was ranked at number 52 on the party"s list and consequently was not elected.
In 2009 she received the Governor-General Art Award and became a Fellow of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts. Macaskill died in Wellington in 2014.
She served as a member of the council of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts, including four years as vice-president
