Lady Accessory, A Dress-up Game for Sheep (2022), is an interactive installation featuring tufted rugs. The project was inspired by a sheep I encountered while walking on Ilkley Moor in 2020. This sheep had a decorative leaf stuck in her wool and was unusually affectionate to me (only me), which surprised other passers-by. I named her Lady Accessory because of her regal dress sense. This brief friendship left me reflecting on human-animal, specifically human-livestock, kinship in the Anthropocene.

The tufted rugs were created two years after my encounter with Lady and first exhibited at "Safe in Each Other’s Shadow”, my MA interim show at the University of Leeds. People remain charmed by my story with Lady Accessory. I’m glad to have a project that helps me remember her, and I hope she continues to live her best life on Ilkley Moor.

Lady Accessory

Lady Accessory cuddling me

At "Safe in Each Other's Shadow", 2022. The bottom left picture is credited to Jules Lister. Top right was a piece of art created by anonymous visitors.