Ribbons is comprised of five corten steel ribbons each carrying the names of nominated Leeds women. As they rise up out of the ground they become intertwined, tied together over space and time in a celebration of womanhood that is embedded into the fabric of the city. The structure appears to swirl and flutter, creating flowing patterns that dance and contrast with the crisp geometry of the surrounding buildings at Quarry Hill.

This is a sculpture that celebrates many women, both past and present, who have made a contribution to our city.

A Leeds City Council sculpture review, published in 2020, highlighted the lack of diversity in public sculpture in Leeds and included Ribbons in an action plan to address this issue. Ribbons will follow on from Yinka Shonibare’s Hibiscus Rising which was built during the Leeds 2023 Year of Culture.

Ribbons goes some way to redress the gender imbalance and champions the inspiring contributions made by multiple women of Leeds from a range of backgrounds with an innovative, contemporary sculpture

Following a public call out in 2019, over 600 nominations were received: the criteria being that women must have lived or worked in the Leeds city boundaries for at least one year. Some women received multiple nominations leaving a total of 383 for inclusion on the sculpture.

The women are represented by their first and last names (no titles) and organised randomly into sections. Each section is numbered so it is easy to locate a specific name on the sculpture.

Ribbons is located at Quarry Hill between Leeds Playhouse and Leeds City College.